"Meems?"
Mimi lifted her cheek off of Roger's head and looked down at him.
"Yes?"
"You wanna do something tonight . . . just the two of us?"
"Okay," she smiled.
Roger smiled too.
"Your eyes are all red," Mimi said, softly, putting her hand on his face.
"I'm gonna go wash my face really quick," Roger mumbled, "I don't want them to see I've been crying." He looked at Mimi. "You won't tell them, right?"
"Not unless I need to blackmail you," Mimi teased.
"Okay," Roger said, grinning. He hopped up from the couch and made a quick detour to the bathroom.
Mimi stood up after he'd left, and quietly walked down the hall that led to Mark and Roger's bedrooms. It was there that she found Mark, Isabella, Daisha and Collins, all with guilty looks on their faces.
"You guys were listening to all of that?" she snapped, angrily.
"Hey, don't get mad at us- it was Daisha's idea," Mark protested.
Daisha kicked him in the knee.
"Ow!"
"That's really low, even for you, Daisha," Mimi said, angrily.
"Sorry," mumbled Daisha, scuffling her feet.
Mimi sighed. "Look, just don't say anything to Roger, okay? He was embarrassed enough for crying in front of me."
"Alright," they chorused, glumly.
"How's your head?" Collins asked her.
Mimi shrugged. "Better."
"You guys wanna go have an early dinner at the Life or something?" Isabella suggested.
Mimi shook her head. "Me and Roger are gonna do something together tonight. You guys can go though, it's fine. Invite Maureen and Joanne too. They could probably use a break from that asshole."
"Jimmy?" asked Collins.
"You know any other assholes?"
"Yeah. Benny."
"Collins, Benny talks out of his ass all the time. You shouldn't take anything he says to heart," Mimi said to him, frowning.
Collins sighed. "I know- it's just when he talks about Angel that I get really upset."
"He's a creep," Mimi declared, "Don't listen to him."
At that moment, the bathroom doorknob began to turn.
"Quick guys, go into the other room," Mimi hissed.
They all scrambled into Mark's bedroom, closing the door quietly behind them.
Roger stepped out of the bathroom.
"Hey," he said when he saw Mimi, "You didn't need to wait outside the door."
"It's nothing," Mimi shrugged. "I talked to the others, Roger. They forgive you." Obviously, she didn't mention that they had heard him breaking down like a baby just moments before.
"Okay," Roger sighed, relieved. "Was Mark understanding too?"
"Yes."
"I'm worried about him," Roger said, softly.
"Why, baby?" Mimi asked, standing closer to him.
"He and Jan are sort of at a bump right now. The whole April thing kind of shocked her, you know?"
"Well, I'd be too," Mimi said, simply. Roger sighed. "I just hope things work out between the two of them. I haven't seen Mark that happy in a long time."
"Me too," Mimi said, softly.
"Did you tell the others we won't be able to make it to dinner?"
"Yes."
"Okay." He slipped on his coat and knocked on Mark's door.
"Yes?" four voices called out.
Roger frowned. "Um, is Mark in there?"
"I'm here," a single voice said.
"Ok, um, Mimi and I are going to go out now, just to let you know." He paused. "What are you guys all doing in there anyway?"
"Nothing," they all said at the same time.
Roger raised his eyebrow and looked at Mimi, who shrugged.
"You ready?" he asked her, putting his arms around her waist.
"Yes," she said, snuggling against his shoulder. "Where are we going?"
"It's a surprise," he teased her.
"Oooh!"
They left the loft together, with their arms around each other.
***
"Well, that went well," Collins said, sarcastically after Mimi and Roger had left. He turned to Mark. "Are you going to come to the Life with us?"
Mark shook his head. "Nope. I'm going to go back to Jan's place. I'm gonna try to sort things out with her."
"Don't worry about it," Isabella said, gently. "The fact that you and Roger knew April was just a shock to her, that's all."
Mark looked at her, gratefully.
"Well, I'm going to head out now too," he said, retrieving his scarf from his closet.
"Alright. I'll stop downstairs and get Frankie. I'll meet you two downstairs, okay?"
"I'll call Maureen and Joanne and tell them to meet us there," said Isabella.
"Okay. I just hope Frankie doesn't bring the dog with her," Collins sighed.
Daisha smirked. "Pretty soon you're going to be attached to it."
"When that time comes, put me out of my misery," he said, firmly.
Daisha shrugged. "Whatever. Iz, can we go now? I'm starved."
"Calm down, we're going," Isabella said, standing up. The three of them approached the door.
Isabella turned to face Mark right before they left. "We'll see you later?"
Mark nodded.
"Okay. Things will work out with Jan, don't worry."
"I hope so," Mark said, softly.
Then he was left alone.
He slipped his feet into his shoes and buttoned up his coat, leaving the lot as well.
***
"You know, this would be a lot more romantic if we had a taxi or something," Mimi joked, struggling to catch up with Roger, who was walking quickly.
"Who needs a taxi?" he said, stopping, "When you've got the Roger Express?" Without warning, he scooped Mimi into the air, and began to carry her down the street.
"Roger! Stop!" Mimi shrieked, giggling.
"I thought you said a taxi would be more romantic," he teased.
Mimi squirmed. "It won't be very romantic when you end up dropping me!"
"Drop you? Never." He began to skip, Mimi still in his arms.
"Roger, you ass! People are looking!" Mimi groaned, as helplessly went limp in his arms.
"So what? They're admiring us," he said to her, as he skipped along, holding her up easily. After a while, he put her down.
"Ride's over," he said, cracking his knuckles.
She smacked him lightly on the arm. "You moron."
"It's part of my charm," he told her.
Mimi laughed. "So, are you going to tell me where we're going?"
"Central Park."
"Ah. Did you get a dinner reservation there?" she teased him.
"I called in early to let the trees know we were coming."
"I hope you got a good table."
"Only the best for you, milady," he said, swooping her up into his arms, planting a kiss on her forehead.
"Can I ask you something, babe?" asked Mimi as he set her back down on the ground.
"Sure."
"Well, ever since I saw Daisha and Isabella again, it's been making me real homesick, you know?"
Roger nodded.
"And I haven't seen my mom in like- five years almost."
"You want to visit her?" he asked.
"Yes," she admitted. She paused. "The thing is, she's married to Joel . . . so obviously I'd have to find a way to get around him."
"Maybe you can call and arrange to meet her somewhere."
"Maybe." She brightened up.
Roger shoved his hands into his pockets as they walked.
"Meems?"
"Yep?"
"Why did your mother marry Joel if he's as bad as you say he is?"
Mimi frowned.
Roger stopped, seeing her discomfort. "If you don't want to talk about it, it's fine."
"No, it's okay," Mimi said.
Roger watched her, waiting.
"After my father died, my mom had to start working. She got a job as a hotel maid. It was the best job she could find."
"There are worse things," Roger said.
Mimi shrugged. "Anyway, she'd been working there for about a month, and then one day she was cleaning this guy's room- guess who it was?"
"Joel?"
"Bingo. Apparently he fell in love with her when he saw her, even with that ugly uniform on," Mimi said, smiling. "He started to see her in other places, and then asked her out. Before I knew it, they were married. And then a few years after that they had a baby."
"You have ANOTHER sibling?" Roger exclaimed.
"No . . . the baby was Daisha."
"Daisha is JOEL'S daughter?" Roger exclaimed.
Mimi nodded. "She's my half sister. Joel's her real father, but obviously she hates him just as much as I do."
"But she calls him Joel anyway?"
"Would you call the person you hated more than anyone in the world father?"
Roger thought about that.
"Anyway, he started to drink a lot, and he would drink away a lot of our money. I don't know HOW he ended up with such a good job that he was able to move my family to the city. I guess he's got bigger connections than I thought. He got really violent whenever he drank. Especially towards me and Daisha- never Isabella. He'd grown some kind of respect for her. Iz can do that to you."
Roger nodded. He knew what she meant.
"All that vodka changed him. I never liked him anyway, he was always really rude and obnoxious- a lot like Jimmy. But each year he became meaner, and more violent. He stopped drinking after his Dad died, but that didn't change the person he'd become. I guess you just can't go back." Mimi sighed.
"Does your mother still love him?" Roger asked, softly.
"No," Mimi said, looking at the ground. "But there's really nothing she can do- if she divorces him, she's left with nothing. Everything we have his really his. He's the breadwinner, he's the one who got the house, the furniture, everything. I personally would rather be in a homeless shelter than living with Joel, but my mom's not that kind of person. She's not as strong. She allows herself to be pushed around, and I hate her for that." Mimi sighed and snuggled closer to Roger. "When I see her, I'm going to tell her how Joel's been threatening me. Maybe I can convince her- there's got to be SOMETHING I can do."
"I'm sure there is," Roger assured her.
Mimi shrugged. She smiled at him. "Sorry to bore you."
"You're not."
"Okay." She looked around them. "How close are we to the park?"
"About five blocks."
"Really? I didn't really notice how much we were walking while I was talking."
"Yeah. You talk A LOT," Roger teased her.
Mimi stuck her tongue our at him.
"So what are we going to do for food, anyway?"
Roger shrugged. "Well, I hear they serve the finest grass in the city."
"Sounds appetizing."
"Oh, it will be."
***
"Jan?"
Mark knocked on her door, softly. "It's Mark. I know you wanted to be alone . . . but I needed to see you. Could you open the door? Please?"
After a moment, Roger heard her footsteps walking towards the door.
"I'm really sorry about upsetting you before," he started to say, as the door opened. But it wasn't Jan. It was a man, much taller than Mark. He stood in front of Mark, his arms folded in front of his chest.
"Who are YOU?" Mark said, stupidly.
"I'm Jan's boyfriend," the man answered, coldly. "Who are YOU?"
"Her boyfriend."
They both glared at each other, menacingly.
"Mark, is that you?" Mark heard Jan's voice as she squeezed in next to the guy who was claiming to be her boyfriend.
"Hi, Jan," Mark said, flatly. "I came to talk to you. But it looks like you're already busy." He turned and started to walk back down the hallway.
"Mark!" Jan yelled, squeezing passed her 'boyfriend,' running after Mark. She put a hand on his shoulder, stopping him.
"What are you doing?" she hissed.
"ME? You're the one with your 'Ex Boyfriend' here!"
"He just showed up a little while before you arrived," she whispered, so he wouldn't hear her.
"So that's Cary?" he asked, staring.
"Yes."
"Handsome," he said, sarcastically.
Jan sighed. "Mark, this isn't what it seems like. Cary showed up a few minutes ago. I told him I've met someone else, but he's still trying to convince me to come back to him." She smirked. "Like that'll happen."
"So . . . nothing went on between you two?"
"God, Mark, OF COURSE not! I love you! Don't you know that?"
"But before . . . I thought you were mad at me."
"I wasn't mad. I was just shocked. It's just a really weird coincidence that you knew April- and that Roger was her boyfriend."
Mark nodded.
"So I've been trying to get rid of him," Jan said, in a low voice.
"Jan?" Cary asked from the doorway, in a loud, rough voice. "That guy bothering you?"
"Cary, please just leave me alone!" Jan yelled back at him. "I'm seeing Mark now. He would never hurt you the way you do."
"I never hurt you," Cary sneered. "You'd seriously prefer that geek over me?"
"Better a 'geek' then someone with steroids for brains. Just GET OUT."
"You like him better, huh? I'll show you who's better," Cary growled, as he walked up to them.
"Shit," Mark said, quietly.
Cary shoved Mark up against the wall. "What are you doing with her, faggot? She's way out of your league. You think she'd REALLY go far someone like you?"
"At least I don't hurt her, and I actually care about her," Mark snapped, furiously. He didn't think before adding, "Asshole."
"You little shit," growled Cary, cuffing Mark in the face.
"CARY STOP IT!" screamed Jan, but Cary shoved her away, roughly, knocking her to the floor.
Mark thought he was going to hit him again, but he slammed his fist into the wall, right next to Mark's head.
"You both deserve each other," he growled, leaving.
As soon as he'd left, Mark rushed to Jan's side.
"Are you alright?" he asked, nervously. "Did he hurt you?"
Jan winced. "I think I twisted my ankle when I fell."
"Here," Mark said, helping her to her feet. He let her lean on him, and he helped her hobble back inside the apartment, locking it just in case Cary decided to return.
"I'm sorry about that," she mumbled, limping over to the refrigerator to grab an icepack.
"It's nothing," he assured her. "Happens all the time," he joked.
Jan sighed, as she applied the ice to her ankle. "Don't laugh about it, Mark. You're lucky he didn't really hurt you. He once broke a guy's jaw for giving me 'looks' at a restaurant.
"Jesus," Mark muttered.
Jan sighed. "So why'd you come back, anyway?" I realized right after you left what a bitch I must have seemed like."
Mark shook his head. "You didn't. I came back because I wanted to make sure we were okay."
"You had to ask?" Jan said, smiling.
Mark shrugged.
"I mean, the whole thing with April IS weird- but that doesn't mean I've stopped loving you," she assured him.
He smiled. "Really?"
"Really."
They leaned forward and kissed, gently.
Jan glanced down. "Happy to see me or is it just cold in here?"
Blushing, Mark crossed his legs.
Jan laughed. "Don't worry about it, Mark."
"Well, I AM happy to see you."
Jan smiled. "Are you tired?"
"Huh?"
"Don't play the clueless innocent schoolboy, Mark- I know you better."
"Well, OKAY," he pretended to think about it for more than a second.
"Bring Mr. Peepers with you."
Mark blushed again, as he and Jan walked together into her bedroom, giggling like two schoolgirls.
Mimi lifted her cheek off of Roger's head and looked down at him.
"Yes?"
"You wanna do something tonight . . . just the two of us?"
"Okay," she smiled.
Roger smiled too.
"Your eyes are all red," Mimi said, softly, putting her hand on his face.
"I'm gonna go wash my face really quick," Roger mumbled, "I don't want them to see I've been crying." He looked at Mimi. "You won't tell them, right?"
"Not unless I need to blackmail you," Mimi teased.
"Okay," Roger said, grinning. He hopped up from the couch and made a quick detour to the bathroom.
Mimi stood up after he'd left, and quietly walked down the hall that led to Mark and Roger's bedrooms. It was there that she found Mark, Isabella, Daisha and Collins, all with guilty looks on their faces.
"You guys were listening to all of that?" she snapped, angrily.
"Hey, don't get mad at us- it was Daisha's idea," Mark protested.
Daisha kicked him in the knee.
"Ow!"
"That's really low, even for you, Daisha," Mimi said, angrily.
"Sorry," mumbled Daisha, scuffling her feet.
Mimi sighed. "Look, just don't say anything to Roger, okay? He was embarrassed enough for crying in front of me."
"Alright," they chorused, glumly.
"How's your head?" Collins asked her.
Mimi shrugged. "Better."
"You guys wanna go have an early dinner at the Life or something?" Isabella suggested.
Mimi shook her head. "Me and Roger are gonna do something together tonight. You guys can go though, it's fine. Invite Maureen and Joanne too. They could probably use a break from that asshole."
"Jimmy?" asked Collins.
"You know any other assholes?"
"Yeah. Benny."
"Collins, Benny talks out of his ass all the time. You shouldn't take anything he says to heart," Mimi said to him, frowning.
Collins sighed. "I know- it's just when he talks about Angel that I get really upset."
"He's a creep," Mimi declared, "Don't listen to him."
At that moment, the bathroom doorknob began to turn.
"Quick guys, go into the other room," Mimi hissed.
They all scrambled into Mark's bedroom, closing the door quietly behind them.
Roger stepped out of the bathroom.
"Hey," he said when he saw Mimi, "You didn't need to wait outside the door."
"It's nothing," Mimi shrugged. "I talked to the others, Roger. They forgive you." Obviously, she didn't mention that they had heard him breaking down like a baby just moments before.
"Okay," Roger sighed, relieved. "Was Mark understanding too?"
"Yes."
"I'm worried about him," Roger said, softly.
"Why, baby?" Mimi asked, standing closer to him.
"He and Jan are sort of at a bump right now. The whole April thing kind of shocked her, you know?"
"Well, I'd be too," Mimi said, simply. Roger sighed. "I just hope things work out between the two of them. I haven't seen Mark that happy in a long time."
"Me too," Mimi said, softly.
"Did you tell the others we won't be able to make it to dinner?"
"Yes."
"Okay." He slipped on his coat and knocked on Mark's door.
"Yes?" four voices called out.
Roger frowned. "Um, is Mark in there?"
"I'm here," a single voice said.
"Ok, um, Mimi and I are going to go out now, just to let you know." He paused. "What are you guys all doing in there anyway?"
"Nothing," they all said at the same time.
Roger raised his eyebrow and looked at Mimi, who shrugged.
"You ready?" he asked her, putting his arms around her waist.
"Yes," she said, snuggling against his shoulder. "Where are we going?"
"It's a surprise," he teased her.
"Oooh!"
They left the loft together, with their arms around each other.
***
"Well, that went well," Collins said, sarcastically after Mimi and Roger had left. He turned to Mark. "Are you going to come to the Life with us?"
Mark shook his head. "Nope. I'm going to go back to Jan's place. I'm gonna try to sort things out with her."
"Don't worry about it," Isabella said, gently. "The fact that you and Roger knew April was just a shock to her, that's all."
Mark looked at her, gratefully.
"Well, I'm going to head out now too," he said, retrieving his scarf from his closet.
"Alright. I'll stop downstairs and get Frankie. I'll meet you two downstairs, okay?"
"I'll call Maureen and Joanne and tell them to meet us there," said Isabella.
"Okay. I just hope Frankie doesn't bring the dog with her," Collins sighed.
Daisha smirked. "Pretty soon you're going to be attached to it."
"When that time comes, put me out of my misery," he said, firmly.
Daisha shrugged. "Whatever. Iz, can we go now? I'm starved."
"Calm down, we're going," Isabella said, standing up. The three of them approached the door.
Isabella turned to face Mark right before they left. "We'll see you later?"
Mark nodded.
"Okay. Things will work out with Jan, don't worry."
"I hope so," Mark said, softly.
Then he was left alone.
He slipped his feet into his shoes and buttoned up his coat, leaving the lot as well.
***
"You know, this would be a lot more romantic if we had a taxi or something," Mimi joked, struggling to catch up with Roger, who was walking quickly.
"Who needs a taxi?" he said, stopping, "When you've got the Roger Express?" Without warning, he scooped Mimi into the air, and began to carry her down the street.
"Roger! Stop!" Mimi shrieked, giggling.
"I thought you said a taxi would be more romantic," he teased.
Mimi squirmed. "It won't be very romantic when you end up dropping me!"
"Drop you? Never." He began to skip, Mimi still in his arms.
"Roger, you ass! People are looking!" Mimi groaned, as helplessly went limp in his arms.
"So what? They're admiring us," he said to her, as he skipped along, holding her up easily. After a while, he put her down.
"Ride's over," he said, cracking his knuckles.
She smacked him lightly on the arm. "You moron."
"It's part of my charm," he told her.
Mimi laughed. "So, are you going to tell me where we're going?"
"Central Park."
"Ah. Did you get a dinner reservation there?" she teased him.
"I called in early to let the trees know we were coming."
"I hope you got a good table."
"Only the best for you, milady," he said, swooping her up into his arms, planting a kiss on her forehead.
"Can I ask you something, babe?" asked Mimi as he set her back down on the ground.
"Sure."
"Well, ever since I saw Daisha and Isabella again, it's been making me real homesick, you know?"
Roger nodded.
"And I haven't seen my mom in like- five years almost."
"You want to visit her?" he asked.
"Yes," she admitted. She paused. "The thing is, she's married to Joel . . . so obviously I'd have to find a way to get around him."
"Maybe you can call and arrange to meet her somewhere."
"Maybe." She brightened up.
Roger shoved his hands into his pockets as they walked.
"Meems?"
"Yep?"
"Why did your mother marry Joel if he's as bad as you say he is?"
Mimi frowned.
Roger stopped, seeing her discomfort. "If you don't want to talk about it, it's fine."
"No, it's okay," Mimi said.
Roger watched her, waiting.
"After my father died, my mom had to start working. She got a job as a hotel maid. It was the best job she could find."
"There are worse things," Roger said.
Mimi shrugged. "Anyway, she'd been working there for about a month, and then one day she was cleaning this guy's room- guess who it was?"
"Joel?"
"Bingo. Apparently he fell in love with her when he saw her, even with that ugly uniform on," Mimi said, smiling. "He started to see her in other places, and then asked her out. Before I knew it, they were married. And then a few years after that they had a baby."
"You have ANOTHER sibling?" Roger exclaimed.
"No . . . the baby was Daisha."
"Daisha is JOEL'S daughter?" Roger exclaimed.
Mimi nodded. "She's my half sister. Joel's her real father, but obviously she hates him just as much as I do."
"But she calls him Joel anyway?"
"Would you call the person you hated more than anyone in the world father?"
Roger thought about that.
"Anyway, he started to drink a lot, and he would drink away a lot of our money. I don't know HOW he ended up with such a good job that he was able to move my family to the city. I guess he's got bigger connections than I thought. He got really violent whenever he drank. Especially towards me and Daisha- never Isabella. He'd grown some kind of respect for her. Iz can do that to you."
Roger nodded. He knew what she meant.
"All that vodka changed him. I never liked him anyway, he was always really rude and obnoxious- a lot like Jimmy. But each year he became meaner, and more violent. He stopped drinking after his Dad died, but that didn't change the person he'd become. I guess you just can't go back." Mimi sighed.
"Does your mother still love him?" Roger asked, softly.
"No," Mimi said, looking at the ground. "But there's really nothing she can do- if she divorces him, she's left with nothing. Everything we have his really his. He's the breadwinner, he's the one who got the house, the furniture, everything. I personally would rather be in a homeless shelter than living with Joel, but my mom's not that kind of person. She's not as strong. She allows herself to be pushed around, and I hate her for that." Mimi sighed and snuggled closer to Roger. "When I see her, I'm going to tell her how Joel's been threatening me. Maybe I can convince her- there's got to be SOMETHING I can do."
"I'm sure there is," Roger assured her.
Mimi shrugged. She smiled at him. "Sorry to bore you."
"You're not."
"Okay." She looked around them. "How close are we to the park?"
"About five blocks."
"Really? I didn't really notice how much we were walking while I was talking."
"Yeah. You talk A LOT," Roger teased her.
Mimi stuck her tongue our at him.
"So what are we going to do for food, anyway?"
Roger shrugged. "Well, I hear they serve the finest grass in the city."
"Sounds appetizing."
"Oh, it will be."
***
"Jan?"
Mark knocked on her door, softly. "It's Mark. I know you wanted to be alone . . . but I needed to see you. Could you open the door? Please?"
After a moment, Roger heard her footsteps walking towards the door.
"I'm really sorry about upsetting you before," he started to say, as the door opened. But it wasn't Jan. It was a man, much taller than Mark. He stood in front of Mark, his arms folded in front of his chest.
"Who are YOU?" Mark said, stupidly.
"I'm Jan's boyfriend," the man answered, coldly. "Who are YOU?"
"Her boyfriend."
They both glared at each other, menacingly.
"Mark, is that you?" Mark heard Jan's voice as she squeezed in next to the guy who was claiming to be her boyfriend.
"Hi, Jan," Mark said, flatly. "I came to talk to you. But it looks like you're already busy." He turned and started to walk back down the hallway.
"Mark!" Jan yelled, squeezing passed her 'boyfriend,' running after Mark. She put a hand on his shoulder, stopping him.
"What are you doing?" she hissed.
"ME? You're the one with your 'Ex Boyfriend' here!"
"He just showed up a little while before you arrived," she whispered, so he wouldn't hear her.
"So that's Cary?" he asked, staring.
"Yes."
"Handsome," he said, sarcastically.
Jan sighed. "Mark, this isn't what it seems like. Cary showed up a few minutes ago. I told him I've met someone else, but he's still trying to convince me to come back to him." She smirked. "Like that'll happen."
"So . . . nothing went on between you two?"
"God, Mark, OF COURSE not! I love you! Don't you know that?"
"But before . . . I thought you were mad at me."
"I wasn't mad. I was just shocked. It's just a really weird coincidence that you knew April- and that Roger was her boyfriend."
Mark nodded.
"So I've been trying to get rid of him," Jan said, in a low voice.
"Jan?" Cary asked from the doorway, in a loud, rough voice. "That guy bothering you?"
"Cary, please just leave me alone!" Jan yelled back at him. "I'm seeing Mark now. He would never hurt you the way you do."
"I never hurt you," Cary sneered. "You'd seriously prefer that geek over me?"
"Better a 'geek' then someone with steroids for brains. Just GET OUT."
"You like him better, huh? I'll show you who's better," Cary growled, as he walked up to them.
"Shit," Mark said, quietly.
Cary shoved Mark up against the wall. "What are you doing with her, faggot? She's way out of your league. You think she'd REALLY go far someone like you?"
"At least I don't hurt her, and I actually care about her," Mark snapped, furiously. He didn't think before adding, "Asshole."
"You little shit," growled Cary, cuffing Mark in the face.
"CARY STOP IT!" screamed Jan, but Cary shoved her away, roughly, knocking her to the floor.
Mark thought he was going to hit him again, but he slammed his fist into the wall, right next to Mark's head.
"You both deserve each other," he growled, leaving.
As soon as he'd left, Mark rushed to Jan's side.
"Are you alright?" he asked, nervously. "Did he hurt you?"
Jan winced. "I think I twisted my ankle when I fell."
"Here," Mark said, helping her to her feet. He let her lean on him, and he helped her hobble back inside the apartment, locking it just in case Cary decided to return.
"I'm sorry about that," she mumbled, limping over to the refrigerator to grab an icepack.
"It's nothing," he assured her. "Happens all the time," he joked.
Jan sighed, as she applied the ice to her ankle. "Don't laugh about it, Mark. You're lucky he didn't really hurt you. He once broke a guy's jaw for giving me 'looks' at a restaurant.
"Jesus," Mark muttered.
Jan sighed. "So why'd you come back, anyway?" I realized right after you left what a bitch I must have seemed like."
Mark shook his head. "You didn't. I came back because I wanted to make sure we were okay."
"You had to ask?" Jan said, smiling.
Mark shrugged.
"I mean, the whole thing with April IS weird- but that doesn't mean I've stopped loving you," she assured him.
He smiled. "Really?"
"Really."
They leaned forward and kissed, gently.
Jan glanced down. "Happy to see me or is it just cold in here?"
Blushing, Mark crossed his legs.
Jan laughed. "Don't worry about it, Mark."
"Well, I AM happy to see you."
Jan smiled. "Are you tired?"
"Huh?"
"Don't play the clueless innocent schoolboy, Mark- I know you better."
"Well, OKAY," he pretended to think about it for more than a second.
"Bring Mr. Peepers with you."
Mark blushed again, as he and Jan walked together into her bedroom, giggling like two schoolgirls.