No Day But Today
DISCLAIMER: I do not own RENT or anything affiliated with it.
"Why did I bring you again?" Mark asked, shifting in his seat next to Maureen.
"Because someone had to come and make sure you didn't walk into the gynecologist's office by mistake. And I was the only one available," Maureen reminded him.
"Right. How much longer is this going to take? I don't have all day," Mark said.
"Marky, chill. And yeah, you do have all day, in case you forgot. It's not like you can go to work half blind."
"I could try."
"Yeah, and the entire city would end up watching a shot of Liz's chest as she talked. Or worse, a shot of the news van," Maureen joked. Mark just shook his head. "Oh come on, Marky, those vans are awful looking."
"Just do me a favor, okay Maureen? Stay the hell away from Liz. Last thing I need is for yet another of my girlfriends to start batting for the other team," Mark said. Maureen just nodded.
"I'll try. But I make no guarantees," Maureen said, a devious smile on her face.
"I'm serious, Maureen. Don't start flirting with her the way you flirt with everything else in a skirt," Mark said.
"All right. Gosh, Pookie, you're worse than Jo," Maureen sulked.
"I just don't want to lose her the way I lost you, Mo."
Roger growled and got out of bed to go stop whoever was banging at the door to the loft. It was eleven AM, and he hadn't slept well to begin with. "What?" he asked, somewhat harsher than necessary.
"Is Mark here?" Jeff asked, pushing his way into the apartment, his daughters in tow.
"No. Mo had to take him to get new glasses. Why?" Roger asked, still unsure of why his roommate's brother-in-law was standing in their living room, holding onto his daughters as though they were about to be torn away from him.
"Oh God. He was right, about Cindy. I can't believe I thought he was cracked," Jeff muttered. One of the girls was attempting to pull away from him.
"Daddy, I have to go to the bathroom!" she whined. He just nodded and let go. Roger led the small child to the door and then returned to the conversation he'd been having with Jeff.
"Jeff, what the hell is going on?" Roger asked. He watched in silent horror as Jeff lifted his other daughter's shirt to expose a large bruised area of her side. Roger hadn't seen bruises like those in years. Not since right after Mark moved in. "She did that, didn't she? That's why Mark was worried about them."
"I should have listened to him… he tried to warn me that this would happen," Jeff said, pulling down the girl's shirt and pulling her closer to him. Roger could see she was scared to death. "I have to take the girls somewhere safe." Jeff ran his hand through his hair in frustration.
"Just stay here for a while, man. At least until Mark gets back," Roger suggested.
"I need to get a hotel room, take care of some stuff," Jeff said.
"You can't go to a hotel. Cindy can track your credit cards. Just stay here and call the police," Roger said.
Mark stared at the ground as he walked, hating his new glasses. They didn't look right, but they were all he could afford. It was the first new pair he'd had since moving out of his parent's house. He'd gotten them the week before he left, but only at his mother's insistence.
"Oh, honey, those glasses are so old they're about to fall apart! You need new ones before you start back to school," Mrs. Cohen said, dragging Mark along to the optometrist's office.
"Mom, I like these glasses. They fit right," Mark said. She just rolled her eyes and made him go inside.
Mark shook his head and tried not to think about it. That was the last time he'd seen his mother before she got sick, and the thought made him want to cry. If only he'd realized she'd never be the same. He would have gone home more often, been a better son. But he hadn't, and now he was left to deal with the fact that his mother never knew why he'd left in such a hurry, had never understood why he wouldn't come home to see her.
Mark couldn't stop his hands from shaking as he unlocked the door to the building. It was almost her birthday, and he'd forgotten until now. He'd never been the son he was supposed to be, and he was beginning to wonder if he'd ever let her know how much he loved her. It was too late now. She was gone.
Mark made his way up the stairs quickly. He could feel the tears burning as he held them at bay, willing them to go away. He wouldn't cry. Not now, months after the fact. He should have cried then, should have gotten it all out of his system so he could move on. He wouldn't cry.
He pulled open the door to the loft and went in, moving past the people he didn't notice asleep on the couch; his mind assumed that he was seeing Mimi and Roger. He didn't notice the suitcases by the door, either. Instead, he ignored his surroundings and made his way silently into his bedroom, closing the door to ensure some amount of privacy. Considering the fact that the walls were paper thin, it would really only serve to keep his roommates from walking in unannounced. He only had long enough to remove his jacket before Roger's insistent knocking filled the room.
"Mark?" Roger asked, pushing the door open just enough to stick his head in.
"Hey Roger. What's up?" Mark asked, throwing his jacket on the bed.
"Jeff's been waiting for you all morning. He caught Cindy hitting one of the girls," Roger said. Mark turned around to face his friend.
"I warned him," Mark said, sitting down on his bed.
"Yeah, I know. I saw the bruises… it's just like…" Roger began. He couldn't finish his sentence; he didn't even want to think about what he'd seen.
"She learned from the best," Mark said sarcastically. He sighed and got up, walking towards Roger and the door. He opened it wider and walked out into the living area of the loft, slowly making his way towards the sleeping forms of his brother-in-law and nieces.