December 25, 10AM, Eastern Standard Time. Mark was right; he did have a headache in the morning. Considering the situation last night Mark thought he contained himself quite well, but he had a headache anyhow. Maureen and Joanne weren't anywhere to be seen, but Roger and Mimi were apparently sober enough after the party to find their way into the only other comfortable spot in the besides the couch Mark had slept on. Both of them lay in the same chair, Mimi somewhat on top of roger. Their fingers were entangled, and it looked like, from where Mark was sitting at least, Roger was perpetually kissing his lovers forehead. In the middle of the room lie Collins, with the rest of the bottle in his hands. It had been drained completely. He was going to be in pretty bad shape when he woke up which, Mark imagined by the look of sheer bliss on his face, would be a couple more hours at the least.
Mark struggled a little getting on his feet. A wave of dizziness swooped over him so quickly he lost his balance and fell back onto the couch. For a moment he thought of not getting up. Maybe he would just stay there and have a day of complete rest. Sleeping all day might not be such a bad thing. He'd certainly have all the energy in the world for his meeting with the Buzzline Execs introducing his documentary.
"Shit." Mark whispered. He just remembered the meeting at Buzzline. Giving them the right to his documentary just didn't feel right anymore. He had poured every ounce of his being into making this film. As if he didn't already sell his soul to them, now he was about to give them his life's work. Now he was about to give them his hopes, his dreams, and his future. It all just felt wrong. There had to be another way. "It's our only way of paying Benny." he muttered. Great. Now he was talking to himself. Mark mocked himself for awhile, and toyed with the idea of telling the Execs to shove it tomorrow in the middle of the meeting. He'd consult with Roger and Collins beforehand though. Their input had never hurt in the past, what harm could it do now?
Mark tried standing up again and managed to stay upright until he got to the coffee pot, where he had to latch onto a dining chair to keep from falling. He poured himself a generous portion of the hot black liquid and sipped at the cup. Where would their money come from if not from Buzzline? They had already told Benny that they didn't need his generosity or his charity. It would be not only shameful but embarrassing as well to go back to him and beg for more free rent. Wait... didn't Collins get money from somewhere. He told them last night that he didn't have his job anymore. Mark's head was still a little hazy, but he was working as hard as he could to remember where Collins acquired all of his riches to splurge on party supplies the previous night.
Of course! The ATM at the food emporium! With that as a cash supply they could do whatever they needed without having to worry about working! And the password? He didn't have to try too hard to remember that one. A-N-G-E-L. What else would Collins make the password? Mark suddenly felt a twinge of guilt. There was no reason he should feel guilty because he knew they all did what they could for him in his final hours, but nevertheless: guilt. The guilt was most likely a result of his old insecurities with himself. They had been there ever since Maureen broke up with him and got a girlfriend. They were feelings that he just wasn't good enough at anything besides his filming. Maybe Roger had been right that night when he left for Santa Fe.
"Mark has got his work. They say Mark lives for his work and Mark's in love with his work. Mark HIDES in his work."
"From what?"
"From facing your failure, facing your loneliness, facing the fact you live a lie. Yes you live a lie! Tell you why. You're always preaching not to be numb, when that's how you strive. You pretend to create and observe when you really detach from feeling alive!"
"Perhaps it's because I'm the one of us to survive!"
Mark deserved this wave of guilt that now rushed over his mind. He had been really harsh on Roger that night. True, they had all suffered a great loss, and no one had meant it to get out of hand. But Roger was harsh too. Roger really didn't have to go so far as to crush what he had been doing his whole life. Then again, Mark himself didn't have to be so harsh on him either about his AIDS. Mark would have to make it up to him sometime if he ever was going to put his life together and fulfill his dream. But how do you make up mocking your best friend and roommate for having an incurable deadly virus? It was going to take a miracle that was for sure.
Mark strolled over to the windows, which were still quite frosted over. He tucked his hand into his shirt sleeve and rubbed on the glass until the frost disappeared. He was regaining his strength back finally. He glanced at the clock, or at least where the clock should've been. He found it lying on the ground right beneath where it hung on the wall only hours ago. It must've been Collins. Ever since Angel's death, he has never looked at a clock. He claimed the reason to be that he feels like he's counting down the seconds of his own life every time he stares at the clock. Paranoia probably, but no one would say anything. To all of them Collins seemed in perpetual mourning. He would never cease loving Angel even beyond his death.
He looked around the room for the digital clock that lay next to the comfy chair. It appeared as though Collins did not see that clock for it was in the same space he left it. The bright red glowing numbers told him it was 10:59. Mark, completely forgetting he set the Alarm on the clock to wake him up this morning, let it go off right next to where Roger and Mimi were sleeping peacefully. 11:00 hit just seconds later.
BEEP BEEP BEEP BEEP BEEP!
Mark had probably never seen a more spectacular display in his life. Roger was the first to wake. Almost immediately he was sitting straight up in his chair, flinging Mimi to the ground. She must have awakened sometime when she was heading to the floor, because she tightened her grip on Rogers' fingers and pulled hard on them out of fear. This brought Roger down to the floor where his body flew beside Mimi's. There was a dull thud of his forehead hitting the cold hard floor. Mark cringed slightly. As if his headache wasn't going to be bad enough already. Oh well… it was his own fault after all.
"What the hell was that!"
"Maybe you should've checked the alarm before you dozed off Mimi."
"Oh shut up Mark!" she teased as she grabbed the nearest pillow and threw it at him.
"I'd be more worried about how he's doing than about what I'm saying." As much as he tried to hold himself back Mark burst out laughing. Roger was groaning on the floor, still probably not completely aware of what had just happened. He was going to be even harder to get along with then usual today.
Mimi stood up and ran to the refrigerator to get ice. She didn't stumble or fall or anything of the sort. Mark was impressed. Mimi managed to go through the whole evening without drinking a thing, just like she promised. She came back a few moments later with a handful of ice and asked if there was anything she could put it in. After a few moments of silence she gave up and ripped part of her shirt off and put the ice in it.
"Roger? Can you hear me Roger?" Mimi was very concerned. She realized just then that she was talking to him as though he was knocked out, but what if he was?
"Mimi? Is that you?"
"Oh god Roger your such a pansy. It was only an alarm clock and you practically throw me to the floor!"
Roger knew it was Mimi's voice, but he didn't know much else. Head? What the hell was a head? Whatever it was Roger certainly didn't feel like he had one at the moment. He lay there for a little bit trying to make out some words she was saying, trying to remember what happened last night, and trying to remember where the hell he was even. A party. Yes there was a party last night at the flat. And now he was lying on the floor. That could only mean one thing, and it wasn't good.
"Roger! Are you even listening to me!" Mimi screamed in a very irritated tone.
"I had way too much to drink didn't I?"
"Wouldn't surprise me at all. Comon… sit up now." Mimi finally peeled Roger off the floor and into the chair again.
"I'll get him some warm coffee." Mark offered.
"That'd be great. Thanks Mark."
Mark walked once again over to the coffee pot only to nearly trip over Collins' body. He was still asleep? After all that? Oh well, guess he could just sleep there if that's what he really wanted. He returned with a cup of coffee each for Roger and Mimi.
Click "SPEEEEEAK!" Click
"Merry Christmas to All! It's me Joanne. Listen, Maureen and I were wondering if you'd still be open to the idea of Brunch at the Life Café today. It has got to be about the only place that's open today, so if you want to go just give us a call back whenever you get the chance! Hope your headaches aren't as bad as ours!"
Click
"Well? What do you think guys?"
"Sure" Mimi and Roger spoke in unison.
"Well what are we going to do about HIM then? We can't just leave a drunken gay man in the middle of the room." Mark said in the most joking way possible.
"Well then go wake him up!" Mark was right; Roger was in quite a pissy mood. He held his tongue the best he could and trudged over to where Collins was still laying down. A couple moments passed as mark was kneeling beside him. Something didn't seem quite right. Mark looked at his friend in search of what it was that was wrong. No… no it couldn't be. He watched Collins for a few more seconds before it hit him like a freight train.
"Is he up yet Mark?" Mimi asked.
"No… as a matter of fact he's not even breathing. Roger, call an Ambulance right now! Mimi, come over here and help get him on the table. We need to try some CPR!" How long had he been like this? Mark had no idea, but he was NOT going to let another friend die on his watch. He ripped open Collin's shirt and began shoving furiously on his chest. One, two, three, four. One, two, three, four. Mark attempted some mouth to mouth, but to no avail. He continued shoving on Collins's chest for another 2 min. Giving up was not an option for today. He shoved down on his chest with all of his might, and it worked! A wave of vomit rushed out of Collin's mouth, and Mark had to turn him over quickly so he wouldn't choke on his own spillings. It was going to be quite a mess to clean up later, but he was still alive.
Collins gasped for as much breath as he could, but it wasn't much. Something was restricting him from breathing still. He let out another wave and he felt better. The words "holy shit" was all that Collins managed to get out of his mouth before passing out again.
"Roger! Is the ambulance here yet?"
"Yes, they just pulled up, and they're coming up with a stretcher."
"Oh thank God." Mimi was crying fiercely. She latched on to Roger and cried on his shoulder while the Paramedics loaded him up on a stretcher, stuck an IV in him, and began the trek down the stairs. Roger comforted her the best he could on the way up to the hospital, but he also had himself to comfort at the same time. Would Collins make it, or would he be going to the divine beyond to be with Angel for the rest of Eternity? He didn't know, but he was going to do everything in his power to keep death from happening. He muttered a silent prayer to Angel.
"I'm sorry Angel. Your death isn't in vain, and I know that now. I've got all I need to finish out my life. My song, my love, and my life have all come into perspective for me. Thank you Angel. Your death is not in vain. Your death is not in vain."
He was almost apologizing to Angel for what he said way back. He needed to in order to cleanse himself of the guilt he felt toward that day. He also needed to cleanse himself of his hate toward Mark on that day. He was sure it had a lasting impact on his friend, and he was tired of hurting people. Now Roger just wanted things to be better. He let his tears flow along with Mimi and Mark in the Ambulance as they sped off toward the hospital. This wouldn't be the end of Collins. This couldn't be the end of Collins. They just wouldn't let that happen. Not here, not now. Roger gripped his guitar and began playing a sweet lullaby for his two companions. Mimi fell asleep again on his lap, but Mark was busy filming the whole scene.
"Doing another Documentary already?"
Mark didn't answer. Roger realized he shouldn't have said anything. This just made Mark, Mark. Right now he knew Mark was still deeply worried about Collins. Instead of talking, Roger thought he should do what only he could do. He stopped his lullaby, and began to play his song, "Your Eyes" for Collins. Mark suddenly burst into tears and turned to Roger, half laughing half crying.
"You seem to have this thing for picking the best song for the occasion."
"I try."
The two friends shared a look, and then began sobbing together. In this act they had forgiven each other for all wrongs done to the other one. They came to a deeper understanding of their friendship as they sat in that ambulance. Their bond could only strengthen from this point on. When they arrived at the Hospital, paramedics wheeled Collins into the ER and the 3 friends sat in the waiting room, waiting for the final verdict on their friend's life.
Roger took a great big and exhausted sigh. "This is one hell of a Christmas present."
