CHAPTER EIGHT
(chapter title – Give Into Love)
"Hey Marky, could I go filming with you today?" I asked. I had only been home from work for an hour and I was bored out of my mind.
"Yeah, sure. C'mon." he grabbed his coat and motioned for me to follow him. The two of us raced each other down the stairs and into the bright afternoon sun. We then headed for Central Park, talking about everything and nothing.
"So, Mar. If you don't mind my asking, why did you want to come today?" Mark asked as we entered Central Park.
"I'm bored and there's nothing to do." I told him, planting a small kiss on his cheek. He smiled and handed me the camera. It was really heavy, but Mark held it study for me.
"Pick something to film." He told me. I looked around and spotted a group of Central Park riders heading our way. The riders smiled at us as I filmed them. Mark and I then went to a different part of the park to watch a twenty-something girl and her yellow lab. The lab was chasing Frisbees and catching them in its mouth. Mark and I were giggling at the dog and owner when my cell phone rang. Looking at the number, I flipped my cell open and pressed 'talk'.
"Hello?" I said into the receiver.
"Mary? Is Mark there? It's Roger." Confused, I handed my phone to Mark. He handed me the camera.
"Hey Rog…what? Okay! Stay calm…where is he? Okay, okay! We'll be right there…bye!" he turned off my phone and handed it to me.
"Mark? Everything okay?" I wanted to know.
"No – Collins is in the hospital." He told me.
"What? How?" I felt tears in my eyes.
"He had a coughing spell at work and he coughed up some blood. It's really serious." He answered, not daring to look at me as we walked out of the park and back to the loft so that we could drop off his camera and head to the hospital.
"How long have you guys known Collins?" I inquired.
"Roger's known him the longest out of all of us – almost ten years. I've only known him for five." Mark said, still avoiding my eyes. I sighed and we continued to walk to the loft in silence.
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Half an hour later, we reached the hospital to see Maureen, Joanne and Mimi in the waiting room. I went over and sat next to Mimi. She had tears in her eyes. I wrapped my arms around her and held her close.
"Where's Rog?" Mark asked Joanne.
"He's in with Collins." The lawyer answered, tears rolling down her cheeks. He sat down next to Maureen and we all waited for Roger to come out of the hospital room.
He came walking towards us, tears rolling down his cheeks. Mimi lifted her head off my shoulder and looked at her boyfriend.
"Mary, Collins wants to see you." Roger told me. I nodded and unwrapped my arms from around Mimi and stood up.
"Second door on the left hand side." Roger told me, sitting down in my vacant spot. I exited the waiting room and walked to Collins' hospital room.
"Collins?" I asked, walking to his room.
"Hey Mary. Come on in." he told me, weakly. I took in a deep breath and entered the room. I hadn't been in a hospital room since my first attempt at suicide and then when my mom had suffered a stroke.
"Come here, honey. I won't bite." The philosopher told me. I sat down upon a chair next to his bed. He was hooked up to machines that were beeping and buzzing. I tried my best to hide my tears, but they streamed down my cheeks.
"It's okay, Mar." his voice was getting weaker by the second. I took his hands in mine and tried to keep them warm. He coughed really hard and signaled for me to get him some water. I nodded and stood up, pouring him water from the tap and brought it back to him. He drunk the water slowly and set it on his bedside table.
"Thanks, sweetie." He said, taking my hands in his.