One Week—17
___________
"February 26th, 7 PM , EST. Zoom in as my lovely sister Lisa sleeps, stuck in the midst of preterm labor."
Maureen groaned and wrestled the camera away from Mark, who gave her an angry look in return. "Zoom in on Maureen, as the diva takes away Mark's camera as he pouts in the corner." She placed the camera back in its bag and with much protest, stowed it away in the corner.
"I was filming, you know," Mark said testily.
"It was getting annoying. Besides, I don't think Lisa wants a camera shoved in her face right now," Maureen added, brushing a strand of hair off her forehead.
Lisa's water had broken an hour after she had been checked into the hospital. The doctor had come back frequently, mostly to run some more tests and to check her dilation. The steroid shots to help mature the baby's lungs had been given around 4 PM, when the staff realized that the contractions were not responding to the anti labor drugs. Her temperature had dropped to 100 even, and although Dr. Tyler suspected pneumonia, she informed Mark that she'd rather take X rays after the baby was born.
Maureen had been playing messenger all day and night, running back and forth to the waiting room where Collins, Dan, Jackie, Roger, and Mimi had taken over. Roger had even copped extra blankets for Mimi from the head nurse and a free exam when she learned Mimi was pregnant.
"Got any threes?" Dan asked, yawning. Roger shook his head and laughed.
"Nope. Hah! GO FISH!" Mimi was lying in his lap, blanket wrapped around herself and fast asleep. Collins was discussing his actual reality theory animatedly with Jackie, who was listening intently and sipping her coffee until Mark came up behind her and rested his hand on her shoulder.
"Hey, I hate to interrupt, but can I steal Jackie away for a minute?" Mark asked.
"Sure can. I've gotta keep these two idiots from killing each other over a game of go fish anyway," he chuckled.
Mark nodded and wrapped his arm around Jackie's waist, leading her out of the maternity ward and to the elevators.
"Are you sure this is okay?" Jackie asked. Mark nodded and stepped on the elevator and pressed the 4th floor, which lead them to the cafeteria.
"It's fine. I spoke to the doctor before I left and she said that Lisa's about eight centimeters now and could go in an hour or so, so we have a few minutes to ourselves. Hungry?" he asked. The elevator dropped them off at the 4th floor, and Mark led the way down the hallway to the cafeteria.
"No, not really," Jackie answered. She shoved her hands into her pockets as Mark paid for a coffee for himself and sat down at a table. She followed, taking a seat across from him, but keeping to herself as much as possible.
"You okay?"
"No. My best friend just died and I'm stuck in the hospital again. Do you think I'm okay?" she said quietly.
"No one's making you stay," Mark answered, a little more anger in his voice than he would have liked.
"I'm leaving for Sydney Thursday night. I can't stay here anymore. I have to go," she said, standing up.
"Why?"
"Because I don't belong here!" she shouted. "I came here because of Natalie, and now she's gone and I have no reason to stay!"
Mark looked up at her in anger. "How can you say that? You have me, and Roger. Mimi and Collins. You have us."
"No I don't. I can't—I have to go. I'm sorry." She wrapped her arms around herself and walked away from him. Mark gaped at her with an open mouth.
The best thing that had ever happened to him had just walked out of his life.
____________________________________
"It hurts Maureen! I can't do this anymore! Where'd Mark go?" Lisa shouted, grabbing onto Maureen's hand.
"I know honey, but you can't push yet, not until—" Maureen was cut off by Dr. Tyler returning, followed by a heavyset nurse.
"How are you feeling Lisa?" she asked, checking her progress quickly as Maureen handed her a few more ice chips to chew on.
"Like hell. I'm never having kids again," she added in seriousness. "It's too soon, but I want it out already!"
"Well, we have some good news and some bad news. Which do you want first?"
"The good," Lisa stated, leaning over slightly so Maureen could rub her back.
"The good news is that you're about ten centimeters dilated right now, so as soon as I finish we're going to prep you and take you to the delivery room down the hall. The bad news is that the baby's lungs are still underdeveloped, so it will have to be placed on a ventilator until it can breathe on its own, which varies with each preemie. I'll be leaving the insurance forms with your brother, and by law, we have to contact your parents since you're underage---"
"But I'm living with my brother, and I don't want them here!" Lisa shouted, trying to argue and breathe through another contraction at the same time.
"I'm sorry, but it's hospital policy. If you were 18, it would be a different story. Ready to go?"
Lisa sighed and nodded, as Maureen helped her switch from the bed to the gurney. "I'm scared. Where's Mark, he has to go with me."
"He'll be there, sweetie, okay? Let me go find him." Maureen smiled and let go of Lisa's hand as she was wheeled out of the room and down the hall. Maureen spotted Mark coming off the elevator and grabbed his elbow as soon as she reached him.
"Jesus Maureen, get off."
"Lisa's in the delivery room right now and she's asking for you. Bad news is, they're calling your parents."
"Fuck. Can they do that?" he asked, rushing down the hall with her.
"Apparently it's hospital policy. Where's Jackie?" she asked, handing a protective gown and gloves to Mark as she struggled into her own.
"We got into a fight—tie that for me? She just dropped the bomb that she's leaving for Sydney on Thursday," Mark added, struggling with the gloves as well.
"That's unbelievable. Did you go after her?"
"No."
"MARK!"
"I'm not leaving Lisa here alone. "You coming?"
"In a minute. Let me go tell everyone else what's going on." Maureen and Mark separated. Lisa was already prepped and ready to go and was now concentrating on her breathing. Mark took a seat next to her and took her hand in his.
"Hey."
"It's too early for this. I'm not ready to be a mom yet," Lisa started crying, and Mark sighed and rubbed her back soothingly.
"You have me, okay? You can do this. The sooner you have the baby, the better you'll feel. They'll probably take you to x-ray and put you on antibiotics for the pneumonia. Then you're telling me everything, and don't look at me like that, because if I'm paying for your medical bills I have a right to know." Lisa bit her lip and nodded.
"Okay Lisa, are you ready? This is Dr. Stevens and the NICU team. Everything's ready, so as long as you're willing, we can get this over with," Dr. Tyler smiled sympathetically. "I'm going to ask you for three good pushes—"
Maureen barged in, with Roger, Mimi, Collins, and Dan crowded around the glass in the delivery room door.
"Did I miss anything?" she asked dramatically. Mark shot her a look and motioned for her to sit down, and she obliged.
"Seems you have very good friends," Dr. Tyler added, pointing towards the door.
"Yeah, you could say that," Lisa groaned.
"Okay, now give me one good push on the count of three. One—two—and three!"
Lisa pushed, Maureen perched herself on her seat eagerly, and Mark's face contorted in pain, due largely to the fact that Lisa was crushing about three bones in his hand. Four pushes later, the nurses were standing by with a baby warmer, and Dr. Tyler was urging Lisa on for a final push.
"Just one more Lisa. Come on, you can do it," Maureen urged on as Lisa pushed a final time.
"There. It's a boy! Born at 8:03 PM on February 26th, 1997," Dr. Tyler smiled as she walked the baby over to the incubator. The nurses were frantically trying to clean the baby off as the NICU team attempted to get the baby to cry.
"He's beautiful honey," Maureen said, squeezing Lisa's hand.
"Mark it's not crying. The baby's not crying," Lisa whispered, trying to sit up to see.
"Just give it a minute," Mark said, kissing her forehead. "You did great." A few seconds later, a short-lived cry broke out in the delivery room.
"He's looking pretty good right now Lisa. He weighed in at 3 pounds, two ounces, and sixteen inches long. Dr. Stevens is hooking him up to the ventilator right now. We'll be sending off some preliminary labs on him, and once we get those back, we'll give you a heads up on how everything looks. Until then, we'll wait until you pass the placenta, stitch, and clean you up before I send you down to x-ray to take a look at your chest. We'll probably keep you here for a few days for observation and then send you home with some antibiotics and vitamins."
"How long will my baby have to stay here?" Lisa asked, lying back against the pillow.
"We won't know until after we get the test results back, but as soon as I find out I'll let you know. You did great today."
"Thank you. Go tell everyone you guys. I'll be fine," Lisa nodded.
"You want to do the honors Marky? She's your sister," Maureen asked.
"Sure…hey guys, it's a boy!"
__________________________________
Rich daddy left you with a parachuteYour voice sounds like money and your face is cute
But your daddy left you with no love
You touch everything with a velvet glove
Now you want to try a life of sin
You want to be down with the down and in …Jackie paced furiously around her apartment; every so often taking out another article of clothing and putting it into the three suitcases she had sprawled out over her bed. She had money, credit cards, her cell phone, and just about everything she could possibly need to get out of the country on Thursday. All she needed to do know was make the initial phone call to let everyone know she was coming home.
She glanced at the clock. 10 PM. It was early afternoon in Australia, and if she called know she'd have a good chance of getting a hold of someone. She stretched out onto her bed and dialed a phone number she knew by heart and waited for it to connect.
"Hello?"
Jackie smiled when she heard her friend's voice come over the line. "Hi Shawn."
"Jackie?"
"Yeah, it's me."
"How are you? Are you still in New York?"
"Sure am. I'm decent, I guess. Just been dancing my heart out lately."
"That's great to hear. So what brings you to think of me?"
Jackie laughed at the sarcasm in his voice. "I just wanted to let you know that I'm coming home on Thursday. I'll probably be in Sydney early Friday morning."
"That's great! You need a place to stay, right? My whole house just got remolded. You have to stay here—no I'm forcing you to stay here."
"Okay, okay. We have a lot of catching up to do."
"And a lot of waves to surf, right?" he added.
"Of course."
"Any particular reason you're coming home? I thought it was the middle of the dance season right now."
"I'll um, tell you when I get there. If it's not too much to ask, my flight's coming in from Los Angeles at 6:10 AM Friday morning your time at the airport."
"Got it. I hate to cut this short, but I promised the guys that I'd head out for some late afternoon surfing. I'll see you soon? Just wait until I tell your sister about this."
"She'll probably be more excited than you are. I'll see you Friday."
She hung up the phone and started pulling shoes out of her closet, stuffing them in the last suitcase. She was completely packed forty-five minutes later, and decided that the only thing she needed right now was sleep.
She didn't know how she was going to make it through Natalie's funeral tomorrow without Mark there beside her.
_________________________
WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 27
9 AM
Mark yawned and walked into the kitchen, adjusting the tie on his suit. "I hate these things," he said to Maureen, who was cooking breakfast for the second day in a row.
"Here. Let me," she said, adjusting the tie for him. "Better?"
"Much. I really shouldn't have let Jackie walk out like that yesterday. She looked pretty upset." Mark slumped over the counter and eyed his coffee before taking a sip of it.
"I know, which is why you need to convince her NOT to go to Australia, because then we'd have to put up with mopey, pouty Mark Cohen until she comes back," she teased, placing a plate of bacon and eggs in front of him. "How was Lisa last night when you left?"
"She was actually pretty good. She was still running a high temperature, but they diagnosed her with pneumonia after the x-rays came back and started her on antibiotics. She has her own private room now, and they say she might be able to come home sometime Friday."
"Poor thing. What about the baby?"
"He's healthy for a preemie. Still on the ventilator, but the doctors are going to keep him until he gains at least an even six pounds, so we're probably looking at him being in NICU for a good two months. They said if they're convinced enough, he could come off the ventilator by the weekend."
"What about your parents? Did they come yet?" Maureen asked, sipping orange juice out of a glass.
"My mom and dad showed up at about midnight last night. They talked to Lisa on the phone, since the nurse insisted that she didn't need any other visitors. They're staying in a hotel in downtown Manhattan. They'll probably show up here eventually, but I told them to at least call so we know they're coming unlike last time," he said.
"You know what I just realized?"
"What?"
"Lisa barely has anything for the baby besides what she left here before. I think we should throw her a baby shower sometime next week. This way she'll have enough things for the baby when she gets to bring him home. It'll be so much fun. We can throw a painting party—and—"
"Whoa Mo, slow down. You do realize you'll be in California next week, right?"
"Oh yea." Maureen's face dropped, and she sighed. "I still have to finish packing."
"Yeah. Listen, I've got to get out of here if I want to make the funeral on time and see Jackie," he said, standing up and straightening his tie a final time.
"And the plan is…?"
"To not let her go to Australia," Mark finished obediently.
"Good boy. Then later we're telling Roger and Mimi about their surprise, right?'
"Right, after the funeral's over and I see Lisa in the hospital, so probably sometime tonight?"
"Yeah, I guess."
_________________________________________
I think I've already lost youI think you're already gone
I think I'm finally scared now
You think I'm weak, but I think you're wrong
I think you're already leaving
Feels like your hand is on the door…
If you're gone, maybe it's time to go home?
There's an awful lot of breathing room
But I can hardly moveIf you're gone, baby you need to come home
Cuz there's a little bit of something me
In everything you
"It was a beautiful service Jackie."
"Thank you." Jackie smiled politely and hugged Natalie's mother gently before walking into the cemetery. She sighed and brushed a piece of her hair off her shoulder before continuing up the steep hill. Harvey was standing at the top, kneeling near the grave, his crutches propped up against the chairs that had been abandoned.
"Hi," she whispered, kneeling down next to him.
"Jac," he acknowledged, trying to bring himself to his feet. "She's really gone, isn't she?"
"Yeah. She is," Jackie said, wrapping her arm around his waist.
"Where's Mark?"
"I don't know. We got into a fight when I told him I was moving leaving for Sydney. He's not coming," she said, handing him his crutches. Together they walked up and down the rows of graves, their feet crunching in the partially melted snow. "His sister just had a baby born three months early."
"Oh. They couldn't bury her next to April," Harvey added sadly.
"I know how much you wanted her to be."
"They might be able to after the ground thaws some more, but they said that spot under the tree was too frozen. The continued up and few rows, finally stopping by a leafless oak tree with a tombstone underneath it.
April Victoria SpataroApril 17th, 1973 – May 2nd, 1995
"Now you belong to heaven
and the stars spell out your name."
"Has he ever been here?" Harvey asked, wiping at his eyes. Jackie shrugged, the February wind blowing through her hair.
"I don't know. I never asked," Jackie answered. "I didn't know you recognized him that day."
"I did. I wish I hadn't. I want to hate him, but I can't, because I know April was just as responsible for her death as he was."
"I know, but sometimes you can't save people, no matter how hard you try," Jackie whispered, bending down to clean off the snow at the base of the tombstone.
"That's true. Can I get a minute alone?"
"Of course," Jackie nodded. She turned and started her way back to Natalie's grave, figuring that this might be the only opportunity to pay her respects before she left.
Natalia Lynn MurphyNovember 10th, 1971- February 26th, 1997
"Forever dancing in our hearts."
"Jackie?"
Jackie turned around and looked back to find Mark standing behind her, a somber look on his face.
"Hi Mark," she replied, turning back to Natalie's gravestone.
"I'm sorry—I didn't want to bother you, I mean, I went to the funeral, but I was in the back. I didn't want you to think I didn't come," he added quickly.
"I see." Jackie bit her lips and tried to keep the tears from falling, but didn't succeed very well. The next thing she knew, Mark's arms were around her and she was practically inhaling him.
"She's really gone. I thought it was all a dream," Jackie whispered into his jacket. Mark rubbed his arms up and down her back.
"I know…" They stood there for a few minutes, and Jackie noticed Harvey standing behind them. She pulled away and cleared her throat, still clutching onto Mark's hand.
"Go home you two. I'll be fine," he said, motioning for them to leave.
"Thank you," Jackie said. "I'll be at your place around 2 to take you to the airport, okay?"
"That sounds fine. I'll see you then," he added, kissing her on the cheek. "See you Mark."
"Yeah, bye Harvey."
__________________________________________
"Soup or the sub?"
"Soup. At least it looks edible," Lisa said, making a face. She coughed a little before he handed it to her. She was sitting up in bed, and although there were bags under her eyes and she still looked a little pale, the doctors said she was making a full, yet lucky recovery. Dr. Tyler had warned her that if she hadn't gotten to the hospital any sooner, the pneumonia could have endangered the baby's life.
"Brat," Mark laughed. Lisa cheerily gave him the finger. "Ouch, someone's feeling better. I see Mom and Dad took off."
"Mom wanted to go to the NICU nursery and then Dad decided he was taking her out to lunch. You know, somewhere where they make real food," she laughed.
"Figures. How'd they treat you this morning? Sorry I couldn't be there."
"It's fine. They were decent, I guess. They have a lot of questions, just like you, but I made up some bullshit cover story and they seemed to buy it for the time being. Mom keeps asking me what I want to name the baby."
"So what are you thinking of?" Mark asked, sitting on the edge of her bed.
"I really like Noah Andrew. What do you think?" she asked, tucking a piece of hair behind her ear.
"I like it. Noah Andrew Cohen. Did they give you the birth certificate forms yet?"
"Yup. I have them right here. I just have to fill out everything, and then they'll give me a permanent copy. Noah Andrew. I like it," she smiled, filling out the birth certificate paper.
"Did Mom and Dad grill you about staying with me again?"
"Kind of. I don't think they mind as much, seeing as I'm turning 18 in April and I'll be an adult then. Cindy gave them a bunch of baby clothes that Jake had when he was little, and I still have the crib, but I'm eventually going to need to go on a huge shopping spree."
"I figured they'd drag you back to Scarsdale," Mark yawned.
"You should be so lucky, but no. They tried, I refused, end of story. I have to drive back up to Scarsdale sometime soon to return my books and my cheerleading uniform. Besides, I'll be able to pack up my room and bring the rest of my clothes down here. Maybe we could go up there next weekend or something, if I feel up to it," Lisa added, taking a sip of the water that sat on her table.
"Are you going to finish high school?"
"Eventually, probably. I already finished the first semester, so I'm really only short of a few credits, since I've had extra classes since freshman year. I'll probably look around the city and see if there's someplace decent where I can take classes, probably before Noah comes home. Then I'll just finish up whatever I have left on the weekends I guess…"
"Collins could help you find a place. You actually might be able to get into the NYU summer program for college, because he's still on good terms with the guy that runs it."
"Yeah, I'll see. I just want to make sure Noah comes home and he's healthy before I make any long term commitments."
"You still owe me a story," Mark said. "I'm holding you to it."
"I know, soon, I promise."
"Lisa?" A heavyset brunette nurse entered the room, pushing a wheelchair with her. "If you're feeling up to it, I can take you down to NICU right now to see your baby. Did you decide on a name for him yet?"
Lisa lifted herself off the bed with Mark's help and walked over to the wheelchair, smiling. "Yeah. Noah Andrew."
_______________________________
THURSDAY FEBRUARY 27
2:30 PM
The guy who put his hands on you
Has got nothing to do with me
And the bruises that you feel will heal
And I hope you'll come around
Because we're missing you
Jackie checked her purse for her passport, flight information, ticket, and identification a final time before placing it near the suitcases of luggage posed by her apartment door. Harvey had left for California last night, and was expected to return to the city sometime in April. Jackie on the other hand, wasn't sure if she was coming back—at all.
Jackie heard a knock on her door and opened it, expecting to see Mark standing in front of her. Instead it was the cab driver, waiting to take her luggage to the car.
"How many?" he asked, loudly chewing on a piece of gum.
"3."
"Where to again?"
"Newark International Airport, international departure terminal," Jackie added, rolling her eyes. She glanced around her apartment, making sure that all the lights were off a final time before grabbing her purse from the couch and locking the door behind her.
"Where ya going? Outta country?"
Jackie stared at him for a second, trying not to laugh. International did mean out of the country last time she checked.
"Yeah, um, Australia."
An hour later, Jackie had paid the cab driver and checked her bags at the curbside. She ventured inside, only to be greeted by an infinitely long security line.
"Where are you going?"
"Sydney, yourself?" Jackie responded, placing her apartment keys in her purse.
"Melbourne. Small world, huh?" the girl laughed, pushing her dark hair over her shoulder. "For vacation?"
"No, actually I'm going to visit my family and friends. I was born there, and came to the city to dance."
"Huh. That sounds fun. I'm going to visit my boyfriend."
"That must be one hell of a long distance relationship," Jackie laughed. "What's your name?"
"Alyssa, yours?"
"Jackie."
"Yeah, it is a pretty hard relationship, but we're actually getting married while I'm down there, and I'm in the process of moving down there after he moved back last year."
"Oh, congratulations." Jackie watched through the metal detector and retrieved her purse from the scanner as Alyssa walked through behind her.
"Thanks. What about you? Do you have a boyfriend?"
"I don't really know anymore. I did."
Jackie and Alyssa walked to the same waiting area, considering their flights were only a gate away from each other. They talked for the next hour and a half, and then Alyssa's flight was called for boarding.
"Well, it was nice meeting you," she said, gathering her carry on bag.
"You too. Have fun in Melbourne," Jackie smiled. Alyssa nodded and made her way to the boarding checkpoint, and Jackie started flipping through the latest copy of Cosmo she had stuck in her bag. Before she knew it, Alyssa's flight had taken off, and at 5 PM her flight was being called for boarding.
"Attention all passengers for American Airlines Flight 1001, service to Los Angeles, California, with continued service to Sydney, Australia. Now boarding first class, rows one through eight. And our passengers with small children. Please have your boarding passes out and ready to be scanned for an early departure. Thank you."
And you used to speak so easyNow you're afraid to talk to me
"Jackie! Wait!"
I wanna kiss youAnd to
Jackie's head shot up, and she saw Mark running towards her. "You can't go."
"I think I need to get away from here for awhile," she answered.
"No, you don't."
"I'll be back soon, I promise. Here—this is the number of my friend Shawn's house down there. Call me whenever you need to, and you have my cell number too…"
"What about us—this?"
"This has nothing to do with you. There's nobody I want to be with more right now then you, but I've gotta get away."
Mark sighed and kissed her before letting her go. "You're coming back, right? Soon?"
" I'll call you when I get in." Jackie waved slightly and continued towards the gate.
_______________________________________
"Ladies and gentleman, please fasten your seatbelts for takeoff…"
Then you walk on, baby, walk on, you walk on…
[A/N: Try not to hate me too much! Jackie will be back soon, I promise! 33]
When we met light was shed
Thoughts free flow, you said you've got something
Deep inside of you