Disclaimer: I don't own Rent (Roger, Mark, Maureen, Joanne, Collins) I do own Gen...Fi...and AARON! Hehe, Gay men rock my moms face.

To my constant reviewers: The frauline and EMI....both of you rock my moms face even more than Gay men do. Here I go...

Marky the Romantic

Gen sat up on her bed flipping through the channels of the hospital TV before groaning and shutting it off. It seemed the only thing that was ever on the damn things were Soap Operas, and personally, Gen could care less if Raoul got Janet back by killing her fiancé Tony who happened to be his sisters ex husband and father of her unborn child. How people could honestly become enthralled in those types of plots evaded Gen's mind. She pushed herself back onto her back and stared up at the ceiling while twiddling her thumbs. She seriously needed something to break up the monotony of patient life. Luckily, she was going to be able to leave tomorrow morning, but in all honesty she felt quite fine. The sunlight poured through the blinded windows and she turned her head slightly to look out at the city. Sometimes she wondered where the sky had gone, she had lived in New York ever since she had graduated from high school, then she met Jeff and everything for her had changed. With him she had felt meaning, importance, and loved. He had come to her one day and got down on both knees begging her to go with her to Africa with him. At first she was reluctant. She loved the city life, and she believed that after experiencing New York's lust, she could hardly settle for less, but, after realizing how much that this trip had truly meant for him, she relented. She smiled as his face came to her mind. She sighed and once again returned her gaze onto the ceiling while trying to hold onto his picture tightly. It scared her sometimes. At moments she could remember everything about him, his scent, his laugh, and his voice, but she could not see his face. Then other times she could only see his face, and lately, he had started to disappear altogether. It scared her. Jeff was the man she was supposed to marry, to grow old with, and yet now that he was only gone and she could not remember him.

She closed her eyes tightly, trying to convert her tears to something else, anything else. Her first night in Africa had been memorable, everything that a young girl in love could possibly want. Now she knew better.

Jeff and Gen had taken a break from unpacking to take a walk around the mission, they found a small clearing and sat down on it. Gen looked up to the skies and gasped.

"You don't see this picture in New York."

"No you don't." Jeff's deep voice replied.

"It's hard to imagine that this is the same sky as New York, it's gorgeous though."

"Yes. See that there, it's Orion's Belt and that is Sirius." Jeff said as he started pointing out the constellations. Soon the conversation quieted down, and the couple sat in silence in a palm to palm embrace. Jeff spoke up after a while. "Gen."

"Hmm?"

"I have something to ask...no say."

Gen turned to him, "Yes?"

"You know I love you, and you know I refuse to use clichés to say the same thing. But I really can't picture my future with out you, and I know that every breath I take would be broken if I had to. I know this isn't overly romantic or even the right timing. I don't have much to offer, but Gen, when we return to America, will you marry me?"

Gen searched his face, "Are you serious. I mean, sometimes you can barely handle seeing me every couple of days, how are you going to handle every day?"

"I'll take vacations. Gen I'm serious." Gen smiled and kissed him deeply. "Is that a yes?"

"Most defiantly Mr. Burrow that is a yes." Jeff smiled greatly and picked her up immediately.

"You, my dearest Genevieve, have made me the happiest man."

"You men always say that."

"Not every man knows you." He said before kissing her.

Gen opened her eyes and quickly wiped away the tears that had built up with the heel of her palm. She heard someone knock on the door frame, and she smiled. "Hey Fi."

"Hey baby sist- I mean Gen." She corrected herself immediately at Gen's glare. "How are you feeling?"

"Fine. I don't know why they won't let me go."

"'Cause they're all a bunch of sadistic bastards that want to screw you up as much as possible before sending you home."

"Probably."

"If you're feeling fine, then why were you crying?"

"I wasn't crying."

"Okay, then why were you 'tearing up'?"

Gen sighed, "I was remembering Jeff."

Fi walked over to her sister and hugged her. "Honey, you have got to stop doing this to yourself. You seemed fine when you got here."

"I was always the better actress out of the two of us." Gen said solemnly.

"True. And I'm pretty damn good."

"Did you get the part?"

"Yup." Fi would be the lead in an upcoming individual musical. "Stop changing the subject."

Gen sat up once again and stared at the wall straight ahead of her while Fi sat down, she didn't say anything for a while, but when she did speak, her voice was cracked slightly. "It scares me so much sometimes. How one moment I can feel him with every one of my senses. I can see, hear, taste, touch, and smell him. But the next moment, I'm straining to remember his entire face. His deep blue eyes, his square jaw, his tanned complexion, and black hair. I just don't get it." She said, dropping her head. She inhaled quickly before talking again. "We were engaged you know. Supposed to get married three months from today. It isn't fair. How people fight their feelings for another while others are forced to go through the motions alone."

"Kind of like your doing with Mark?"

Gen snapped her head up at the mention of Mark. "What?"

"You said that it wasn't fair that people deny their feelings, that is exactly what your doing with Mark."

"I'm not denying anything. I care for him."

"Then why are you making this so hard?"

"He hasn't tried that hard."

"This isn't just about Maureen is it?" Gen sighed, and then shook her head. "No I thought not. What else is going on?"

"I feel like I'm somehow betraying Jeff when I'm with Mark. I tried to ignore it, push it aside, whatever, but it's still there."

"So basically Maureen's kiss just gave you a way to end it all."

"Always the analytical one aren't you."

"I guess, but why?"

"I'm leaving Fi." Gen said, her voice rising. "Do you understand that? Do you understand that I'm going to be leaving in a few months and stay gone for a few months? How fair would that be to Mark? How fair would that be to me?"

"Shouldn't you let Mark decide?"

"I could, but he'll choose the wrong decision. This is what's best Fi, believe me when I say that."

"I wish I could. Gen look at me. You can push away as many people as you want to, but Mark won't give up. So you can relent now, or be prepared to be severely embarrassed by his attempts. Put him out of his misery, let him in."

"I'll think about it." Gen said numbly.

"Sounds like dinner should be arriving, I'll leave."

"It's only like 6!"

"I know, remember, there are old people here."

"I know, I know." Fi kissed Gen's forehead.

"I'll pick you up around nine tomorrow, alright?"

"Sounds good."

"Bye."

"G'bye." Gen sat back as the nurse wheeled in the dinner cart.

"Hello sweetheart."

"Hey." Gen said to the nurse.

"Here's your dinner." The nurse said placing the uncovered plate in front of her. Gen poked it with her finger.

"Can I have some extra..."

"Macaroni, yes dear, I know." The nurse said smiling while placing the bowl in front of her.

"Thanks. I just don't trust...that." She said pointing to the offending plate.

"Sometimes, neither do I." Gen laughed.

"A nurse with a sense of humor."

"One of us has to have some."

"Of course, what a perfect combination. A 'knock knock' joke while shoving an IV into someone's vein." The nurse chuckled slightly.

"Back to the salt mines for me."

"I know how that works."

The nurse contemplated her for a moment. "Yeah, I guess you do. Bye Miss Genevieve."

"Bye Andrea."

Gen started eating the macaroni and humming lightly to herself when she heard a knock. It was Mark. She waved him in cautiously. "Hey Gen." He said quietly. She looked up at him curiously.

"Hey Mark...can I help you?"

"Listen Gen, I know what I did was really really stupid, I didn't mean for it to happen, honestly it just-"

"Did, I know Mark. I just don't understand how it can "just happen" you either want it to happen or you don't. You were pretty stupid to be making out with her in Fi's apartment, it's like you wanted to be caught!"

"I didn't choose the time nor the place for Maureen to make a move on me. If I did it would have never happened! God Gen, could you just listen to me long enough to desert your fucked up preconceived notions?"

Gen glared at him. "Excuse me? Who the hell do you think you are? Marching in here trying to pretend that nothing happened, you stupid arrogant-" Her voice was cut off by Mark's lips pressing into hers. Gen responded almost immediately, surprising Mark, but mostly herself.

"That." Mark said indicating the exchange. "Meant something to me. What happened between Maureen and I didn't. I don't know how to make it up to you, but I'm willing to do anything to do so."

"There isn't anything to do. Truth is Mark, we'd have eventually broken up."

"You don't know that."

"How many times am I going to go through this?" Gen groaned. "Mark, I'm going back."

"And what? You don't trust me?"

"It's not that, but it wouldn't be fair to you."

"Are women always this dramatic?"

"What?" Gen asked by his abrupt change in conversation.

"Nothing. I don't care about your damn fears of the future, I want to spend now with you." Mark said simply, staring down at her. Gen shifted uncomfortably under his scrutinizing gaze.

"I can't promise you anything."

"I didn't ask for promises."

"I don't know what's going to happen in the future."

"Didn't think you did."

"If you find someone you like more..."

"I won't."

"If you do, feel free to go for it."

"Are you done now?"

"I guess."

"So...can we make up?" Gen only looked up at him. "Good, but first..." Mark quickly left the room and returned with a teddy bear about the size of Gen, two dozen orange-tipped and blue roses, a plastic tiara and a red and silver banner that read, "To my princess from your prince.."

"Do you know how insanely corny this is?"

"Yeah, but I hoped you'd like it." He said grinning sheepishly.

"Marky, the romantic." She giggled. "I love it." She stated. He walked over to the bed and she pulled him down into a kiss.


Collins and Aaron were sitting at a coffee table, Collins drinking tea, while Aaron drank a latte. Aaron held a guarded, distant look in his eyes, and Collins could feel it. Aaron had always been a somewhat carefree guy, but ever since Gen's admittance into the hospital, things had been different. "Aaron, what's wrong?"

Aaron snapped out of his reverie, "Huh what?"

"I said what's wrong?"

He cleared his throat, "Nothing."

"I don't believe you."

"You should."

"I don't." Collins stated, and Aaron looked at him defeated.

"I-" Aaron stopped and sighed. "Collins, I have something I need to tell you, something I probably should have told you earlier."

"And..." Collins said, immediately covering Aaron's hands with his own.

"Okay...listen, Fi's dreams were only part of the reason we moved to New York. I mean she told me she wanted to move to New York, and I just had to get out so I followed. Collins...I'm dying."

Collins pulled back slightly. "AIDS?"

Aaron quickly shook his head 'no'. "No, I don't have AIDS. Alright, when I was a little kid, I kept having these blinding migraines. My world would go black for minutes to hours and I'd eventually black out. Turns out I had some sort of tumor. Well anyway, I went through radiation and such, and well the doctors told me it was gone. Well about two months before we moved up here, I started having migraines again. I went back, went through radiation and chemo, and I was told that the tumor wasn't affected whatsoever. We moved up here because I had to get away, I couldn't spend the rest of my life, however long that may be, down there."

Collins gulped slightly and looked at Aaron. "So why did you pull back when I told you I had AIDS?"

"Because I didn't want that revelation from you. It meant that we were something, and I didn't want that to be. I've lost boyfriends to death, and I've felt that emptiness. The fact that I was...am going to die before you, only to leave you to that same fate breaks my heart." Aaron said, while staring down at the table top.

"This is a new case for me." Collins said, an attempt to lighten the mood.

Aaron's head snapped up, "What?"

"I've had boyfriends, but they are either healthy or have AIDS. Angel, the man I had planned to spend my life with, died of AIDS."

"I'm sorry."

"I am too. But listen, the fact was I kind of felt the same way you did. I only wish you had told me sooner." With that Collins stood up and left, leaving Aaron to stare after him as he left.

"Shit." He whispered.


Fi and Roger sat on Fi's couch watching a movie. Every once in a while Roger would lean over and kiss Fi. She would in turn poke his side, indicating that indeed, a movie was on the screen. "I don't care." Roger said, grinning.

"Ugh, fine." Fi said before leaning up to kiss Roger. He smiled into the kiss which continued to grow. Fi started to push Roger down on the couch, and she laid down on top of him, kissing him senselessly. She really couldn't believe how fast life could change on someone. One moment you were in an argument, the next moment you were making out like there was no tomorrow. She liked the latter better. His arms came around her and rested on her behind while she placed her hands on his cheeks. After a small eternity, the two broke apart, and Fi dropped her head to his shoulder, breathing his scent in deeply while Roger leaned back and closed his eyes. Fi pulled back into her seated position and Roger sat up as well. "Well that was..." But she was cut off. Roger kissed her and soon the positions were switched. Fi under Roger, her lips seemingly attached to his.

Sometimes you just have to let your lips do the talking.

A/N: Review! And if you're a new reader....let me know what you think! Thanks for reading, you guys really help me to unwind!