Quick note: Thank you to everyone who reviewed, it really makes my day. Just so you know, I'm going to see Rent for the first time on June 23rd (hopefully, it's not official) so I'm gonna hold off a little on this until I actually see it. I'll probably put in a few more chapters but I won't get too far into the plot until I can see the characters more clearly. I've had lots of help so far to make sure I'm getting them right, but if anyone seems out of place let me know. I think that's it, on to chapter 3!!

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Chapter 3- When I Used to Go Out

An hour later, Benny, Roger, Mark and Maureen left the apartment and headed towards the Cat Scratch club. Roger had to walk in-between Mark and Maureen so that another fight wouldn't break out; not that it mattered since they weren't speaking to each other anyway. Benny tried unsuccessfully to start a conversation, but after a few tries he gave up, figuring that even complete silence was better than constant arguing. However, even complete silence wasn't something they could agree on, and soon they were back to fighting.

"And why did you throw the vase? I thought you liked that."

"I would like it a lot more sticking out of your head."

"Why are you always like this?"

"Like what?"

"This"

"What's this?"

Mark just made a groaning noise, throwing his arms up in annoyance. Maureen continued to glare at him, staring right through Roger. Benny muttered something quietly.

"What?" Mark and Maureen snapped at the same time.

"Nothing," he said quickly, "Chill out, I wasn't talking about you." Neither of them looked convinced but they didn't say anything.

Tensions were high by the time they got to the club, and almost instantly Maureen detached herself from the others, saying she had to use the bathroom. Roger could see something in Mark's eyes as he watched her walk away, but he couldn't place what it was. He wasn't very good at emotions; he needed Collins for that sort of thing. He was kind of upset that Collins had decided not to come since it normally was he that fixed the fights. Whenever someone was having problems, Collins was always the first to spot it, and usually the one to solve it. He had a heart bigger than anyone else Roger knew, and to this day he still wasn't sure why they were such good friends being as Roger was constantly told he had no heart at all. Of course, having such a big heart wasn't always a good thing, Roger thought as he remembered all the men who broke Collins's. He was a very trusting individual, and he got burned because of it. It was different though when Collins got hurt, because no one was there to comfort him.

The three boys quickly found seats at a table, making sure to save a space for when Maureen returned. They watched as different performers came on stage, some sang, some danced, some were boys, some were girls but they all had one thing in common. They all were very provocative. Roger didn't normally go for that kind of thing; he used to, but ever since he met April he shied away from clubs like these. He was convinced that April was the girl he was meant to be with, she was beautiful and caring, and Roger felt as if he was a better person when he was around her. Sometimes he couldn't even feel his cravings for smack; that was how special she was.

"Roger, check that out!" Benny said, breaking into Roger's thoughts. A young woman, she looked hardly older than sixteen, was dancing on stage, her long brown curls flying as she whipped her head around. Her short leather dress showed off her dark Latin skin, as did the handcuffs attached to her wrists. She winked at him before going into a split, causing many of the club patrons to hoot. Roger soon found he couldn't take his eyes off her, though he wasn't sure why. Sure she was beautiful, all the girls here were, and her dancing wasn't spectacular though it certainly entranced him. No, there was something different about her, something he couldn't place. All he knew was, she was different from the rest of the dancers he had seen tonight. The girl leaped off the stage and began to make her way through the crowd, pausing every so often to run her hand along someone's face or ruffle another's hair. As she approached Roger, she smiled, and winked again. Beside him, Benny needed a drool bag. He was watching her so intently Roger was surprised his eyes didn't fall out. Mark, however, wasn't watching the girl at all; he was busy staring at something across the room. The girl brushed past the three, and Roger felt the cold steel of the handcuffs on his arm. For a fleeting moment, he had the urge to rip them off and take her away from the sex-starved club members. She didn't deserve this, why was she here? Why did she do this every night? Roger was shocked at how strongly he felt for this girl when he knew nothing about her. Not even her name.

Suddenly, Mark stood up and walked away, apparently angry at something. Benny wouldn't have noticed if a giant wrecking ball had come crashing through the club, so he didn't see Mark leave. Roger did though, and he was following him instantly. Curious about where Mark was going, he stayed back a few steps, waiting to see what was happening. He was listening to the applause for the handcuff girl when he saw what it was Mark was so mad at. It was Maureen. Apparently she had decided to solve her problems with Mark by flirting with other guys, and Mark had noticed. She was sitting on some guy's lap, giggling when Mark walked over.

"Um, Maureen?" he said quietly. She barely heard his voice but turned around. She let out a shriek, jumped up, and threw her arms around him.

"Pookie!"

Mark carefully took her arms off his neck, "Maureen, what are you doing?"

"Nothing! I was just talking to some old friends of mine." She smiled at the two men sitting nearby.

"Old friends?"

"Yes, we were old theater buddies, I haven't seen them in a long time, we were just catching up. Where have you been? I've been looking for you."

"I've been with Roger and Benny. Why didn't you come find us?"

"I looked for you sweetie but you weren't around. Then I ran into Charlie and got distracted. I'm sorry if I made you worry."

"Maureen don't you think I know better than that?" he said softly.

"Mark why don't you trust me?"

"I do trust you. It's just… never mind. I just get suspicious when you wander off and I find you with a bunch of guys and…"

"Pookie, I'd never do anything to hurt you," Maureen gently slipped her arms over his neck again, and this time Mark didn't pull away. Roger looked away in disgust; he knew Maureen wasn't "talking with some old friends" unless she'd come here before to meet with these guys. He couldn't figure out why Mark had let the issue go so easily, he knew that if he caught April with some other guy he'd be pretty upset. But then again, Mark let a lot of things go easily; nothing really bothered him. Roger had no idea how he did it, but somehow he managed to not let even the most painful things affect him; it was like he had some way of detaching from reality. Maybe it was because he was a filmmaker; maybe he could hide behind the camera when filming. But how could he still detach when he wasn't behind it?

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Please review, I'll give you a big hug!!!