A/N: Maureen, just like all the other RENT characters, is not mine. I wish, but no.

Enjoy.

I promised never to cheat again. And I stuck to it. For almost a year. By then I was 23. Then I met Joanne.

This was an accident. I never really flirted. Until I was in too deep. I had never guessed that I was bisexual. But I am. That's one of the biggest mistakes made about me. I am NOT lesbian. I am bisexual. I so not like only women, I like men and women. How could I love Mark like I did if I only loved women? People would say that I never really loved him. That's a lie. I always loved him, true and deep. In fact, I still love him. But that doesn't change anything.

I met her by accident. I was on the subway, riding to work. I saw a young black woman across the car. I looked at her, and she looked right back. Then she smiled.
When we got off, she came over to me. I noticed that her hands were full and she was almost tripping over herself. She started to speak in this powerful, assertive voice. She was clearly a strong, determined woman. I admired her for that. I still do.

"Hello, my name's Joanne. I noticed you in the subway," she said, getting right to the point.

"Hi, Joanne, my name's Maureen. I noticed you too," I said with a slight giggle. "I live in the East Village, but I'm heading to work. What about you?"

"I am also heading to work, I live in the East Village as well. I'm a lawyer, what do you do?"

Now I was starting to feel a little bit intimidated by her, which never happened around men. I was always the dominating, powerful one,and everyone else was the shy, uncomfortable, meek, intimidated one. Not today. The tables had turned.

"Oh, right now I'm just a waitress, at the Moondance Diner. But I am studying to be an actress and a singer."

"Oh, really? I've always wanted to go into directing. Maybe we could team up sometime."

"Hmm... maybe. Sure. Where did you go t school?"

"I went to Harvard Law. And you?"

"Columbia."

"That's great! Well, I've got to get to work," she reminded me.

"Oh, yeah, me too. But talk to you soon, okay?" I hastily added.

"Yes, sure, here's my contact information. If you need it."

"Bye."

"Bye."

After she was gone in the other direction, I sighed and looked down at the business card she had given me. It said, "Joanne Jefferson." I knew from that she came from a wealthy family. Then it had her office name on it, and three phone numbers where she could be reached: work, home, and cell. The card also listed a company e-mail address.

While I was reading that I got a very strange feeling inside. I had no idea what it was, but I knew that I'd never felt anything like it before. It was at that moment that I knew that Joanne was a very special person.

The next day, when I got home from work, I decided to give Joanne a ring. Mark was out filming and Roger was God knows where, out shooting up with April (his girlfriend) probably. Collins was still at work, and Benny had just moved out to live with his new girlfriend Mimi, who I never met. From the empty loft I dialed Joanne's cell. She picked it up on the second ring.

"Hello?"

"Hey, it's me, Maureen, remember me?"

"Yes, indeed I do. I was just thinking about you."

"Really? Well, I just decided to give you a call, to see how you're doing and all."

"I'm all right, work is stressful, but I'll live. And you?"

"I'm pretty good. I have nothing to do, want to go have a coffee or something? It's on me," I offered.

"Sure, I also have nothing to."

"OK, want me to meet you at your place?" I asked. "I can pick you up, I have a license and my room mates and I share a car."

"OK, great." She told me her address. I wrote it down, and scribbled a note to Mark, Collins, and Roger, in case they got back before I did. It just said I was out having a coffee and a get-together with a friend from high school. I figured otherwise, they would be suspicious.

I hopped in the car and drove to the address Joanne had given me. When I got there, she was outside waiting. She got into the passenger seat on the other side.

Once we got there, I ordered a "medium double, hazelnut, non-fat, no-whip mocha". Joanne had a small cappuccino. I paid for both of our drinks and we sat down. First, I told her about Roger, Collins, and Mark. I told her all abut them, what they did, how they were, everything. I neglected to tell her that Mark was my boyfriend. That was just an old habit, back from my cheating days. They couldn't know I already had a boyfriend. I just sort of made it sound like they were all just friends. And most of them were.

Joanne told me about her parents and how they always expected her to be perfect. She told me about her little sister, who was going to be an engineer. And about her life in college, where she had seemingly no friends.

She asked me about my parents, and to avoid a whole big discussion, I just told her they both died in a car crash. Not exactly true, but close enough. Since my mom was dead and I hadn't seen my dad for eight years and never hoped to ever again. It made things a lot simpler.

Soon after, we finished our drinks and left the café. I drove her home. When we got there, she stepped gingerly out of the car and invited me inside.

"Um, sure, I guess, why not?" I answered. "Will I get a ticket?"

"If you park like that, yes. Look, park right over there and nothing will happen," she reassured me, pointing to a spot across the street. After I parked, I walked back over to Joanne. She began to walk up the stairs. I followed.

"Now, I don't have any room mates, so my apartment is pretty small," she told me. "But it's enough for me to live in." She opened the door.

She was right. The place was really tiny. It consisted of a bedroom, a bathroom, and a living room/kitchen area sort of combined. But she seemed to fit in it just fine. I liked this place right off he bat. It had a cuddly, homey feel to it. It was cosy.

"You're right, it is small. But I like it," I commented. She did not reply. Eventually we setted don on the couch to watch a T.V. show. I don't remember what it was, but it made Joanne laugh. That's what I paid more attention to. Joanne. I think I honestly watched her the whole time. She was just so... at ease, so relaxed. I liked her this way. I was starting to really like her.

A/N: Sorry, this one's really short. But the next one will be out by tomorrow. Maybe even chapter 4. (Told you I work fast). So please review, I will be happy. A happy me is a good thing.