He walked for along time then retuned the quarters she and Ben shared. He couldn't go in, so unsure where to go next, tired, angry, he just sat down. He'd been in the hallway outside their small apartment for hours now, his arms behind his head trying quiet his nerves. What the hell was he doing here? What kind of idiot was he? He should have seen this coming.
He heard the door slip open and light steps behind him, "Marcus?" her voice sounded worried. "I thought you went on a walk."
"I did. I'm back now," he snapped crisply not even looking at her. He could see from the corner of his eye she was wearing her nightgown.
"Why didn't you come back in?" She sat the trash bag she'd been carrying back in side the doorway and signaled the door to close behind her. They were alone in the corridor. "Are you ok?"
He shook his head. He couldn't believe she'd just asked that. He'd almost put his family in the poorhouse to get him here, demanding that they send him to school so he could escape the fate they'd built for him. He'd acted like a love struck fool, coming all the way from the rim to be with her, and now she was flaunting someone else on her arm? "Just peachy," he growled rising and marching down the hall.
She chased after in her nightgown. "Okay, I understand that you're mad," she observed.
"Shouldn't I be?" he asked looking up only slightly. "You tell me Chris. You told me, no, begged me, to come and now… this BEN person. Why Am I even here? Why didn't you tell me? I could have saved my family a lot of trouble and expense by staying home and helping them instead of DEMANDING I be sent here to school. To be with you."
"Ben and I are just friends. You have to believe -"
"Don't lie to me! I'm stupid, evidently, but not blind!" he yelled harshly, beginning to pace, throwing out his arm toward the doors to the apartment. "I saw those looks you gave him and how he touched you at dinner." He closed his eyes to regain his composure. "How long has this been going on?"
"What?"
"Four weeks ago I last spoke to you and it was like old times. Now I finally arrive as planned, except all the plans have changed without my knowing."
She didn't answer.
"How long?" he asked again sterner.
"April."
"Six months?! You've been carrying on that long? Do you love him?"
After a long silence she looked up mournfully, "I don't love him like I love you."
'Oh, that's not exactly comforting,' he mumbled to himself.
She started to cry, and that hurt him, too; she never cried, she wasn't one of those weepy girls on the vids who cried at the drop of a hat. She wasn't normally emotional. That fact she was crying told him she was sincere. But, it didn't solve anything.
"I didn't mean for this to happen! We WERE just roommates, but then things changed. If you'd come when you were supposed to-"
"Don't you EVEN TRY to pin this on me!" he roared, jumping to his feet pointing at her. "I got here as fast as I could. Yes, it was one semester later than planned, I know that's SO off schedule! How often did we talk since you left? Every month at least? Sometimes more. How many times could you have told me about this? How soon could I have avoided making this mistake?"
"Mistake? I'm a mistake now?"
"No, I'm the mistake obviously by the looks of it."
"You don't understand –"
"Understand? WHAT'S TO UNDERSTAND? Do you UNDERSTAND what I went through? What my parents SOLD or mortgaged to even get me here? What kind of ASS I made of myself so I could come here to be with you? So we 'could be together' finally!" He made large flourishy quotes marks to the sky around him, "No, of course you don't'! You were here! With BEN! Playing house!"
"I never intended that to happen, I thought you weren't coming!"
"Bullshit! Six months ago you knew I was coming, Chris!"
She didn't answer she only stared at the floor, silently sobbing.
"I didn't go out and try to replace YOU, did I? But then I was stuck on a rust bucket with 300 grimy men, but then maybe I didn't try hard enough." he raged. With nostrils flaring wide he delivered his final attack. "I'm sorry I ever met you."
She reached out a hand to his cheek and he flinched away. "Don't. say that..." It came out nothing more than a squeak. "I can fix this. Just give me a few days… I can fix all this," she whispered quickly like mantra.
Her words chilled his spine, waking him from his thoughts and he pulled away. "No, you can't make it all better with a wave of your hand. If you love him, you love him, Christine. That's the end of it."
He turned around and began pacing behind her, his arms crossed tightly in front of him. "You always wanted to please your father so badly. I'm sure he's very happy right now." It was a cold and backhanded thing to say, but he wanted to say it, to hurt her just a bit. Just a fraction of how she'd hurt him.
"Truth be told," he whispered, "I like Ben, for the little time I got to know him. I think we could have even been friends, if that means anything." He opened the door to apartment and walked in. She followed him looking like a whipped puppy. He stopped to try to make amends. "I wish you both the best." He said coolly, picking up his bags.
"Where are you going to go? The dorms don't open for another week!" she cried, chasing after him into the apartment lobby.
"No Idea. I guess I'll have Mum and Dad sell another cargo loader so I can get a hotel room," he spat back pointedly, walking off towards the transit tube. He hadn't wanted to say that, but it was the truth as to how he'd got here to begin with. His parents had basically sold or re-mortgaged everything they had to finance his education. Being good parents and going above and beyond so their son had one better than them. They wanted him to find a chance for a life on his own. He owed them a big one, and he'd not soon forget it.
He wouldn't be contacting his parents though, no need to add insult in injury, he knew what to sell for the money he needed - the ring. Not like he'd be needing it now, would he?
"Marcus!" she cried after, breaking into tears, slinking to the floor in the open lobby and sobbing uncontrollably. "Don't leave me."
He didn't look back.
"Good Morning, Doctor!" Marcus called out entering the medlab. "How are we today?"
"Why are you so cheerful? What's wrong?"
"Such a pessimist!" Marcus said, smiling. He looked around and hitched one hand up on his hip. "I did have a question though."
"Oh oh,. Here it comes."
"No, no, nothing bad, just…" he bit his lip and looked up. "What do you know about Dr. Christine Jenkins?"
"Why?" Stephen was honestly surprised.
"It's not anything sordid or shadowy, I assure you."
Stephen exhaled thinking. "Well, I know she's working with Dr. Kyle back on earthdome. Came to get my data on the Markab Plague for a research paper on communicable catastrophic alien diseases, which was no simple feat under the blockades let me tell you, why?"
Marcus bit his lip again, the looked hesitantly to his friend.
Franklin Smiled. "Come on, you can tell me."
He gave in feeling a sheepish smile slip on his face, "We grew up together. I saw her the other day when she arrived and wasn't quite sure what to say. You know me, I like to know what I'm up against before I open my yap."
"She broke your heart, huh?"
Marcus' eyebrows rose. He didn't think he'd made it that obvious. "Very long story," he said coldly, letting him know he WAS NOT going to elaborate. He knew Stephen would push it otherwise.
"So, you don't want to know she's single then," Franklin sang, wagging his eyebrows.
"Definitely not!" Marcus retorted back, then looked up with a curious twinkle. "Since when?" he smiled.
"I have no idea, but I know she was talking about having to leave soon, because the kids were at her Mom and Dad's since she was single again. I have to say you have, or had, very good taste. Brilliant, and beautiful… those don't stay on the market long. So don't take a long time to make up your mind or there might be a line."
The Ranger stroked his chin. Single. He hadn't seen that in the file. "Well, thank you, Stephen, but I've become rather used to lines. Anyway, I have to get down below I have a three o'clock."
"You going to at least say hello?"
"Possibly," he said deep in thought. "Been a long time. Won't change anything if I did. Uhm, I'd appreciate it if you kept this under your hat, don't go talking to her about it."
"My lips are sealed."