Chapter Thirteen: Rhyme and Reason
When the group got back to the loft, they found their power to be working again, and a message on their machine.
"Hey guys, it's Benny. Look, I'm going to be in New Jersey for about a week or so, maybe longer. I've been trying to set up a meeting with the head of Cyberland, and I think I've got one for some time this week. I'm going to need Joanne to drive down here as soon as possible. Let Sam know what's going on, and please get him here with Joanne. I'll call and keep you updated when I can, but I'll be pretty unavailable. Wish me luck."And the message ended. Joanne sighed.
"If we pack tonight, Sam and I can probably leave by tomorrow morning to get down to New Jersey,"she explained.
"Aw, you have to leave so soon?"Maureen asked, pouting.
"The sooner the better,"Mark pointed out.
"But what about my protest?"Maureen whined.
"You'll do fine. This is important, Maureen. Their home is at stake. We can't afford to lose it, not now,"Joanne said sternly, eyeing Collins. Maureen nodded.
"I know,"she sighed. "Roxie will have to run the technical stuff for the show!"Roxie's eyes widened, and she shook her head frantically.
"Nuh uh! No way!"she cried.
"Oh, come on Rox! It's not that bad!"Maureen insisted. "Besides, you owe me for going behind my back with Benny's son."Roxie stopped, scowling at her mother.
"You're ruining my life!"was her ever-famous reply.
"I'll help you, Aunt Mo,"Aaron offered.
"Well thank you, Aaron. At least someone cares!"Maureen snapped, shooting Roxie a stern glare.
"Will you guys be okay while I'm gone?"Joanne asked. "I mean, without money or anything..."
"We're set for a week, at least,"Roger assured her. "We have food, we have AZT, we have some form of heat again...we should be fine."
"Okay. I'll leave you what money I have. Take care of yourselves,"Joanne said, in a very motherly tone. Then she sighed. "I have to pack, and cancel any other cases I've been working on. Roxie, you can call Sam once we get home, and Maureen, you can help me pack. Let's go girls."Maureen waved as she and Roxie followed Joanne out of the loft.
"Well, it looks like everything is pretty much taken care of then,"Mark stated.
"Good, now we can get some sleep!"Collins announced. His voice sounded hoarse, and full of exhaustion. Aaron walked over, holding his father's arm protectively.
"Shh. Don't strain your voice, dad. You did a lot of shouting tonight,"he said softly. Collins grinned.
"It felt damn good too. I haven't done that properly in years,"he joked. Aaron laughed, helping Collins over to the bed.
"You're amazing, dad...you really are."
Becky had flopped onto the couch, looking very pale, very thin and very tired. Mark noticed her gaunt expression, and joined her.
"Hey Becky, you okay?"he asked. She nodded.
"Yeah. This cough has just been getting to me. I think it's a cold or something,"Becky replied. "Hey, do you think there's any way we could get a doctor to the tent city?"
"Why? Is it the Harrisons?"Mark guessed. Becky nodded.
"Sarah, the baby, has been looking kind of sick. I'm scared,"she explained.
"Becky, if that baby looks sick you should stay away. You don't know what kind of diseases are going around the tent cities, and we can't be bringing any sicknesses in here-"Mark warned.
"It's fine. It's nothing bad, but Sarah's small. I'm afraid she won't make it, especially not with these temperatures,"Becky said nervously. Mark grinned. He trusted his daughter.
"Okay. Take care of yourself,"he said, stroking her hair a little. Becky grinned too.
"I will,"she replied. Mark kissed Becky's forehead as he stood up.
"Good. Well, I'm heading off to bed. Good night, Becky,"he called, walking off.
"Night dad,"Becky called back, closing her eyes as she lay on the couch. She felt warm. Very warm. She touched her forehead, which was burning up, and she sighed. She was fine...wasn't she?
The next weekend was Roxie's fifteenth birthday party, much different that Jason's party. Almost all her bohemian family was there, of course(Collins hadn't been feeling well, so Mark had stayed home with him)but it was mostly her ballet and school friends. It was held in a reception hall that Joanne had rented out. Aaron, Sam and Jason were there early to help Roxie decorate, as they waited for Becky to return from the Berklee Jazz Festival in Boston, where she had been since Friday evening.
"Close on Roxie, who will be the star of the party tonight as she hits her big fifteenth birthday, making it one step closer to her driver's license! Clear the roads, people..."Jason narrated. Roxie turned, sticking her tongue out at him as she taped a streamer to the wall.
"You're just jealous because you know you'll total a car before me,"she replied. Aaron laughed.
"If he keeps that camera up to his face when he's driving, you just might be right about that!"he joked, which earned a laugh from everyone.
"Hey Birthday Girl!"They all turned at the sound of Becky's voice from the door. Roxie's face lit up as she whirled around.
"Becca!"she cried, using her own special nickname for Becky. Becky placed her guitar down, hugging Roxie as she came flying over.
"You look fantastic, Rox,"Becky commented.
"Thanks,"Roxie beamed happily. Then Becky began wheezing, something she did more and more frequently. Roxie patted her back soothingly, as Becky tried to catch her breath.
"Hey Becca, you okay?"Roxie asked nervously.
"Yeah, yeah I'm fine,"Becky insisted. She looked pale, even worse than when she had left, and was shivering again. The others eyed her carefully.
"Are you sure? You really don't look good...maybe you shouldn't stick around for the party. I mean, I don't want you getting any more exhausted, you've been busy with the Harrisons all week, and you just came in from Boston..."she insisted. Becky shook her head.
"Roxie, it's your birthday. I want to be here to celebrate it with you!"she cried.
"Well...just promise you won't puke on any of my friends!"Roxie teased. Becky laughed.
"I won't,"she assured her. Though as she picked her guitar back up, she swayed a little. Jason quickly ran to her side, ready to catch her if she fell.
"Hey...careful,"he warned, holding her up.
"Thanks,"Becky replied. "God...I don't know what's up with me. I must be staying up too late."
"Becky, what if you're getting sick?"Jason asked cautiously.
"I'm not, I swear. I've been safe around the Harrisons,"Becky assured him. Now she was staring him in the eyes. "I'd be safe with you, too"she added softly. Jason's eyes locked with hers. "Jason, I need to know...that kiss at the Life...did that mean anything?"Jason sighed. He had been waiting for this.
"I wasn't thinking. I was being impulsive,"he replied bluntly.
"So that means you wanted it?"Becky said hopefully.
"It means that it might not have been the right thing to do,"Jason corrected.
"It felt right to me,"Becky persisted.
"Becky, we'd be risking so much. Too much. I couldn't live with myself if you got sick, if I infected you-"Jason insisted.
"Who says we have to do anything unsafe? I'm happy just being with you. You need to understand that."Jason hesitated, letting out a deep breath. Becky took his hands, and he flinched. "Jason...touching me won't infect me."He pulled away quickly.
"No Becky. I...I just can't,"he insisted. "You'd want more from me after a while, and I wouldn't be able to give it to you. I'd only be making you miserable."
"You're making me miserable by pushing me away!"Becky cried. "Please Jason. I thought you felt the same way about me that I felt about you."It took all his strength for Jason to turn away from Becky's pleading blue eyes.
"You thought wrong,"he said softly. And Jason quickly turned, walking away from Becky as she stared after him sadly.
Becky left the party early, feeling sick both physically and emotionally. Collins woke up from where he was napping on the couch as Becky entered the loft.
"Oh...hey there Becky,"he greeted, rubbing his eyes.
"Hey Uncle Collins. Sorry, I didn't mean to wake you up,"Becky apologized.
"Don't worry about it, it's about time I woke up anyways. What's going on? You weren't up to partying with the Johnson-Jefferson crowd?"Collins asked curiously.
"Not tonight. I'm a little spent, actually,"Becky admitted. Suddenly the door to Mark's room opened, and he came out.
"Hey, who's–Becky!"He grinned at his daughter, who could only offer a small, tired smile in return. "How was Boston?"
"It was fun. We did really well at the festival. Second place,"Becky replied.
"That's awesome! You'll have to tell Roger,"Mark said. "Hey, weren't you going to Roxie's party tonight?"
"I left, I haven't been feeling too good,"Becky explained. Mark frowned, concerned.
"What's wrong?"he asked anxiously.
"Oh, it's nothing too bad,"Becky replied, not mentioning the fact that she had vomited five times over the few hours that she had been home. "I'm just not up to partying Roxie and Aaron style,"she added, with a grin. Collins chuckled a little.
"Oh God, he wasn't in a dress again was he?"he asked.
"Not this time,"Becky assured him. She suddenly grabbed her guitar off the floor."I think I'm going to go visit Aunt Mimi. I need to talk to her now."Mark frowned a little.
"Are you sure?"he asked. Becky let out a deep breath, nodding.
"Yeah. I really need to, dad,"she insisted. Mark was at a loss for arguments.
"Okay. Be careful. Don't stay out too late,"was all he could say.
"I won't be long,"Becky assured him. And she headed out the door. Mark sighed, flopping onto the couch beside Collins and sighing.
"Am I a horrible father or what?"he asked. Collins grinned, wrapping his arm over the back of the couch.
"You know you're not,"he replied.
"I really don't at times. I mean, Becky would rather go talk to Mimi's tombstone than me. That can't be a good sign,"Mark insisted. Collins shrugged.
"Well, think about it. Mimi was like Becky's mother when she was younger. She was the closest thing Becky had to a mother throughout her childhood, they had a connection. It's natural for her to still want to talk to her,"he explained.
"God...I really fucked this up, Collins. I should have known I couldn't do this myself! How could I think I could support a family on my own?"Mark moaned in despair.
"You've supported this family of ours for a while, Mark,"Collins stated. Mark stopped, looking over at his friend, who was staring him in the eyes intently.
"You really mean that, Collins?"he asked.
"I really do, Mark,"Collins assured him. He ruffled Mark's hair, and Mark had to laugh at that. Collins watched him laughing for a minute...
"Hey Mark?"
"Yeah?"
"I think I want to watch 'Today 4 U' tonight."Mark stopped, his laughter coming to a halt as he stared at his friend. He knew what Collins was asking. Collins knew what this question meant to Mark, and they locked eyes for a while before Mark spoke.
"...are you sure?"he asked softly. Collins nodded.
"Yeah. I'm sure,"he replied. Mark hesitated, taking in a deep breath...then nodded.
"Okay,"he said, getting up and going to get the projector and his film reels. And they sat there together that night, spending this last, joyful moment together as the friends they had always been.
Aaron and Jason were walking back to the loft after Roxie's party that night, in silence. After a while, Jason couldn't take it.
"Are you going to talk to me at all?"he asked Aaron. Aaron turned on him, frowning.
"Why did you lie to Becky?"he demanded.
"I didn't lie,"Jason snapped back.
"Oh yes you did. You can't hide it Jason, it's clear. You love her. Why did you have to tell her off? What are you trying to prove?"Aaron demanded angrily.
"I'm trying to make her look at things realistically! We can never be together, it was stupid of me to kiss her that time...I can't let her down!"Jason insisted.
"Then what are you doing pushing her away like this? Jase, you're just destroying all chances of happiness for you two. Why are you doing this?"Aaron asked.
"I got scared, Aaron!"Jason blurted out. "Scared because I care too much about her, and I couldn't live with myself if I hurt her!"
"Jason, you need more confidence in yourself, in her. She cares just as much as you do, and she knows the risk you guys would be taking,"Aaron assured him.
"I know, Aaron,"Jason confessed. "I know. I know I screwed up, and I know I have to fix it. But I can't. Not yet...I need time."
"No day but today,"Aaron reminded him. Jason sighed, looking down at his camera. It was time to stop hiding. He needed to tell Becky the truth.
A/N: This chapter was a bit longer than usual. There's actually a lot of stuff I've cut out in between the last chapter and this one, but I think it still flows well enough. Sometimes you might be able to tell if I've cut a chunk out somewhere, but I'll try to make it not quite as obvious. Thanks for your comments! And you can expect updates every day unless otherwise noted.