Author's Note: Man I was so upset earlier when they wouldn't let me upload this. It was crazy! Thank you guys so much for reviewing! And a big thanks to Cimmerian Sorceressfor pointing out that anonymous review option wasn't turned on. I really had no idea that it was disabled. So now you guys can review without being signed in! Yay! Enjoy!

Chapter Twelve:

Mimi stood, hesitant to knock on the door, not knowing who would answer. She didn't know if she could face Roger, but she knew she could face Mark. Mark was always forgiving and welcoming and that was one of the biggest reasons why she was always so at ease around him. She could do no wrong around Mark. Roger, on the other hand, was less predictable and harder to deal with. He had a temper and was so quick to change his opinion about someone that Mimi wondered how anyone stayed friends with him long enough to care for him.

Mark did it, she told herself, He must have changed him, somehow. She couldn't help the jealousy that she felt when she realized that she wasn't the one that changed Roger or even made him a better person. He had changed far before she had even walked into his life, she just brought the spark back in.

All she wanted to do was talk to Roger and find out what was going on. Maybe even get Mark to say something in the process. She hated being left in the dark and she needed this. She wanted to save the shaky relationship she had with Roger. God, why is this so hard? She asked herself as she took a deep breath and knocked on the loft door.

No sounds came and she tried again, knocking a little louder.

The sound of shuffling could be heard. A pause. Then she heard footsteps making their way toward the door. The door slid opened to reveal Roger, who looked surprised by Mimi's appearance.

"Mimi?" Roger asked, "What are you doing here?"

"I really want to talk to you guys," the dancer answered, "I just, I don't want to be left in the dark anymore."

"Mimi…"

"Please, Roger, I need to know what's been going on. It really hurts to not know the truth."

Mimi saw Roger finch at those words. The musician slowly nodded and motioned for her to get inside. She did so and she stood there, awkwardly, not knowing what to do for the first time in a long time.

"Let me get, Mark," Roger said, quietly, "He'll need to be here if you want the whole story. Just… just keep in mind that it's his choice to do this. Not mine."

"Alright," Mimi replied.

When Roger disappeared into Mark's room, she stood there, alone, wondering what she would find out. She had been waiting for something to give her a hint as to what had happened. Maybe she could get it out of them this time around. Maybe she wouldn't be kept in the dark anymore.

"Mimi!" Roger's voice startled the dancer and caused her to run to him.

At Mark's door, she could see the musician on the bed, leaning over the filmmaker, who wasn't moving. No matter what Roger did, Mark didn't move and wouldn't wake. She jumped when Roger slapped the other man, trying to get a response, any sign that he would come to.

"Call an ambulance!" Roger exclaimed, "Now!"

Before she could move, something fell from the bed and rolled in her direction. The momentum stopped when the object hit her boot. She slowly bent down and picked it up, her eyes scanning over the clean, new label. Pills. Sleeping pills.

The bottle was empty.

The rattling I heard in his bag, she thought, feeling her heart drop to her stomach. She finally understood why Mark told her he wouldn't be buying film for a long while to come.

"Mimi! Call an ambulance!"

Benny looked up at the hospital building that loomed over him and sighed. It had been a long time since he was put into this position. In fact, he almost convinced himself that he would never hear from his old bohemian friends again. Now, it seemed they needed him for a far bigger reason than just rent or AZT. They needed him to be there to help a friend.

What'd you do to yourself, Mark? He wondered as he stepped into the hospital. He asked the nurse at the registration desk where to find Mark Cohen and was instantly pointed to the second floor. It seemed that it wasn't the first time she had to point someone in the right direction that night.

He rode the elevator up and was thankful for the fact that he was alone. It gave him just enough time to gather himself and to reflect on an incident a few years ago that was too similar to this one for comfort. He remembered when Collins had called him in a near panic.

"Collins? Is that you?" Benny asked, rubbing the sleep from his eyes as he got out of bed. He didn't want to disturb his fiancé, soon to be wife, and walked out of the bedroom into the livingroom of her apartment, "What's wrong?"

"It's Mark," Collins explained, sounding distressed, "He's been taken to the hospital."

"What?" Benny tried to keep the volume of his voice down, "What happened?"

There was a long pause on the other end, "He tried to kill himself, Ben."

Benny felt his heart skip a beat. Mark? Of all the people that he knew, he thought that Roger would be the first to commit suicide before Mark would even think of taking his own life.

"But... I don't get it." Benny tried to find the right words, something, anything to make the situation make sense.

"I don't either," Collins answered and Benny could tell that he was lying, "You'll have to ask him yourself. But please, come down to the hospital and help me out. I have to keep an eye on Roger and Mark need someone to be there. We need you. He needs you, right now, as a friend."

"I'll be there as soon as possible."

It was frightening to get a call that was almost identical that evening. The only difference was that Roger was the one that was calling, meaning he had to have been very desperate. The fact that Roger called made Benny listen. It meant that something was terribly wrong.

Benny braced himself as he stepped off the elevator and walked toward the room number the nurse had given him. Before he could get very far down the corridor, he could see his friends sitting, waiting, and silent. It was a sight that was hard to see from a group that was normally so lively.

"Benny?" Maureen asked when she saw him approaching.

"How is he?" he asked, not wanting to start a confrontation with the diva at a moment like this, "What did the doctors say?"

"They don't know if he's going to wake up," Mimi said, softly.

"What happened?"

"He swallowed an entire bottle of sleeping pills," the dancer answered, "They pumped his stomach said his body hadn't digested all the pills when he was brought in. But the fact that all that shit is still in his system… They said it's put him in a coma and they don't know when he'll come out of it."

Benny found the information hard to digest. He knew that he hadn't been very close to any of them lately, but Mark, Mark always held a special place in his heart no matter how distant they got. They were college buddies and good friends. In fact, they were best friends before Roger came into the picture. And even though he abandoned all his bohemian beliefs, Mark really did give him a chance to rejoin the group.

"Where's Roger and Joanne?" he asked, noticing that two of them was missing.

"Roger's in there," Collins answered, pointing to the door to Mark's hospital room, "And Joanne went to the cafeteria to get some food and drinks for us."

"Do you…" Benny hesitated, "Do you think I can see him, alone?"

"You don't have to ask," Maureen said quietly, her voice shaky and her tone one rarely heard, "I'm sure he'd love to have you see him. He was always a sucker for his friends."

Benny nodded and quietly knocked on the door before pushing it open. The room was dark, but it was no surprise. It was Roger that was in there after all.

The musician looked up from his place by Mark's bed, "Benny?"

"Yeah, it's me," he answered as he stepped closer. He saw that Roger was holding Mark's hand, "How are you holding up?"

"I don't know," Roger answered.

"Think I can have a moment with him?" Benny asked, trying to sound as gentle as possible.

The musician simply nodded, but was slow to let go of Mark's hand. Benny remained standing until he heard the door click shut. Sighing, he took the seat that Roger had previously occupied. He placed his hand on Mark's arm, smiling at the contrast that their skin presented. It was one of those things that their friends in college would tease them about, Mark being so pale and Benny being so dark. Polar opposites. It seemed that it was true.

Benny closed his eyes and took in the silence, wondering if Mark really forgave him for picking success over his dream of being an actor.

"Hey, Mark," he said softly, his hand squeezing the filmmaker's arm reassuringly, hoping that the gesture was felt, "I know I haven't been around lately, but I knew I had to come see you when Roger called, that call scared the shit out of me. It really did."

He took a deep breath before continuing, "Why would you do this to yourself, again? Didn't the first time prove that people cared about you and wanted you around? Did it teach you that life was worth living even if you don't get what you want? Cause you can't throw away all that talent and passion, Mark. You can't.

You used to drive me, you know? When we were in college and you showed me all your screenplays, I wished I had half as much drive as you to achieve my dreams. I loved being in your films and I loved all your encouragement. The fact that you came out to New York and looked for me made me believe that maybe I can achieve my own dreams."

Too bad I took the easy way out. I'm sorry I left you guys behind, but I can help more this way. I can help you guys out, maybe even play the bad guy once in a while. I just didn't want to get this call. This was one of the last calls I wanted because it is the most painful thing to swallow. This hurts Mark. It really does."

I know I don't know why you did it, but I have a pretty good idea. Maybe it was Roger all over again or maybe life has just gotten too hard, but don't know the full story because you never told me. But please, don't give up and let your films and efforts go unnoticed. We need someone like you to let us see that no matter how down on our luck we are we can still do great things. We need you to hold us together, as a family. I-I need you to be here for me too. To be my anchor that keeps me grounded to reality. To be that spark of hope that there are better people in this world than those selfish bastards in the corporate world."

Benny took a deep breath and wiped away the tears he hadn't realized that he had been shedding. Sitting there was heart wrenching. He never wanted to see Mark in a hospital bed again, but here he was, hoping his friend would get his message.

"Please, don't give up."

Joanne had never seen Maureen so quiet before and it worried her as she held the performer in her arms. She ran a hand soothingly through the other woman's hair and tried to whisper comforting words into her ear, but it seemed that the act was empty when she couldn't even comfort herself.

It was hard to be part of something so big and so sad. She had heard that this wasn't the first time some of them were experiencing this. In fact, Maureen was absolutely livid the day she found out that she hadn't been a part of something so big in the past. Now it seemed that the diva wished that it hadn't happened. It wasn't as exciting or dramatic as the movies made it out to be.

"You should get some sleep," Joanne said, softly.

"No," Maureen shook her head, "I'm okay."

Joanne just wished she knew what to do. Mark was always good at doing things like these. He was able to talk to them and listen and she found that he was so good at it that sometimes people forget why they were talking to him or even why they were unhappy in the first place. He did a great job consoling them when Angel died, reminding them that Angel would have wanted them to be happy. It was death, but they still had to celebrate life.

It seemed no one else in their group of friends that that kind of effect on them. It was unsettling.

What would they do if Mark didn't survive? Just what would they do?

Author's Note: Who saw that coming? Who didn't and think I'm evil for doing this? I'm sorry if I scared anyone, really. I swear I won't do too many more drastic and overly dramatic things. It's just how I am. I get a little worked up. But hey, Benny made an apperance at last! Who else was wondering where the hell this guy was? I really hope you guys enjoyed this.

Thank you for reading and please leave a review! Next part will be up soon, hopefully.