A/N: Well, my plan's gone all to hell. I'm not writing it all at once because I have absolutely no time to sit down and write the whole thing. I'm going back to regular installments. Then, when it's over, I'll go back and edit and fix all my big bad continuity mistakes, I promise. So I know it's abrupt, and I know it all makes absolutely no sense, but I've been filling in the holes slowly. However, I think in the next chapter, the holes will all be completely filled and everyone can go home happy. As of now, there will be seven chapters in total. But if I keep thinking of completely new ideas that take up a whole chapter like this one did, then it'll go on forever.
Beware the italics, they'll eat you alive. Sorry, but they are necessary.
Thank you for your patience and your interest in my story! :-)
The Witness
by Ex Astra
Mimi had been sitting on the table for a while before Mark had shown up. She wouldn't move… Couldn't move. It was all just too painful.
"Man, is he… Roger?"
Roger gripped the wall tightly, his knuckles turning white as he leaned his forehead against it. His breath was labored and heavy.
"Roger, are you okay? What's…"
Roger cut her off. "It's fine, Mimi. I'm fine."
"You don't look fine! You look… Roger, you look…But you were fine a minute ago!"
"I didn't…"
"Yeah?"
"I just…"
"Didn't what?"
"I didn't want him to see me!"
Mimi blinked. "Mark? You didn't want Mark to see you? But honey, why n…"
"He sees me like this and he thinks it's over, Mimi. You know him. He overreacts. And really, I'm just… Tired. Just feeling a little out of it. That's all."
She froze. "Out of it… How?"
"Please don't do that. Don't worry about me. I had to… Because he was gonna worry… Please don't be worried and make me hide things from you, too. I… Need you… To not worry. Okay?"
Mimi turned her head to the bedroom. She could see Mark talking on the phone. His mouth was moving slowly, forming clipped sentences she couldn't make out. No sound penetrated her ears.
She wrung her hands nervously.
She looked him hard in the face. The look in his eye… His body was so weak, but his eyes were alive, waiting for her answer. The look just proved that he was willing to do whatever was necessary… If she was going to worry, he would put up the same façade he did with Mark. He'd pull out every last reserve in him to keep her from pain. But if she put it aside… If she could put it aside and help him, just for now…
She walked over to him and wrapped her arms around his waist. He let out a sigh of relief and collapsed into her embrace, trying to forget how hard it was to stand on his own. Mimi was there now. Everything was going to be fine. As long as he had her.
Mimi could feel him let go as he succumbed to his weakness. He felt so fragile… As if he'd break with the softest touch, shiver at the slightest draft. She pulled back a little and looked up at him, lightly stroking his face. "Let's just go lie down, okay?"
He just dropped his head farther into her hand, closing his eyes, reveling in her touch.
She spoke quietly, "Roger, you need to rest."
He reopened his eyes, now darkened with an unknown sadness. "Okay."
They started to move towards Roger's room. She needed to support him around the waist while his arm was draped over her shoulders. She couldn't believe how much he was depending on her.
Mark had hung up the phone a long time ago. She couldn't see him through the crack in the door anymore; he had moved somewhere behind it. She still couldn't make out any sounds. She would give anything to hear some sound of life come from that room. Breaking objects. Screaming. Crying.
But all she heard was silence.
Roger fell onto the bed slowly but heavily. The comfort it provided was overwhelming after standing for so long. Mimi sat down next to him, not knowing what else to do.
He held out his arms to her. She carefully lay down beside him, resting her head on his chest and draping her arm across his stomach. She started to talk softly as he stroked her hair.
"Honey, I know that you didn't want Mark to worry, but… Maybe you should have told him something. Just showed him a little of how weak you were. I mean… I can't help you alone. I'm not with you all the time. Besides, he knows more than I do. Even if I was always around, I couldn't help you like he could. He's practical, y'know? I couldn't come up with all the little things he could to help you. Plus, he was with you when… Well, he can take care of you."
She felt a little chill go through him. His slow motion through her hair stopped. She must have scared him.
"But it doesn't even matter anyway. You're going to be fine. Today's no different from any other day. You're just a little tired. Nothing more. Hey, maybe we can go somewhere tomorrow! I'll take off from work, and we'll get the whole group together and go start some trouble somewhere. Like old times." Her attempt at casual conversation was failing. She sighed and gave in a little to the worry she'd been suppressing.
"Roger, I can't even think about tomorrow. I'm trying so hard to, and I want to… For you… But I just can't. I'm too busy thinking about today. And today you're weak. You're weak and you're hiding it from Mark and that just makes this seem so much more… Serious… It's just… I don't know what I'd do without you, Roger. You know I love you, right?" She looked up at his face when there was no answer. "Right?"
His eyes were closed.
Mimi didn't even know she was staring into oblivion until she was stirred from her trance by a sound. She whipped her head around quickly. Her eyes darted all around the room, searching for whatever had emitted the noise. This was the first thing she'd heard since Mark came home, and she wasn't going to lose it.
*Turn, click. Turn, click…* She played it over and over in her mind. She had heard that sound before. It was so familiar, such a common everyday noise… Why was it so hard for her to remember? It sounded like… Like… God, what was it?
She finally recognized it after a few moments of hard thinking. The doorknob. It was the doorknob turning and opening and…
She turned towards the door.
"Collins."