"Forces are Gathering"
Disclaimer: I do not own Rent, or any of its characters (although I wish I owned Roger…) and this is purely for fun. In fact it's my first fic, so please don't throw flaming arrows at me or anything. Donuts would be nice. Comments, critiques, criticism, all is welcome. This chapter is a little short, sorry.
Chapter Two: I Do.
"Hey! Y'all are here!" Collins exclaimed, joyfully walking up to his friends, engulfing each one of them in a welcoming hug.
"You look like a penguin."
Mark hit Roger in the arm and then turned to Collins with a smile. "You look great."
"Thanks. All I need are sunglasses and I'll feel like a secret agent like James Bond or somethin'. You're looking pretty sharp yourself Mark! Ladies; gorgeous as usual. And Roger. I had no idea you cleaned up so well."
"Yea, yea. Let's skip the flattery and just cut to the party."
"Unfortunately there's a little something called a 'wedding' before the reception. Totally pointless, I know, but we gotta go." Mark said sarcastically and rolled his eyes at Roger with a smile. "C'mon, let's go find our seats. See you at the reception Collins." Taking Maureen's hand, Mark led her down the isle of the church and into an empty row of bleachers, April and Roger following close behind.
Glancing up at the alter, Mark caught sight of both Benny and Collins standing side by side on the left of the minister. Benny looked nervous as a child getting their first shot, and Collins seemed to be using all his strength to keep from bursting out laughing.
It wasn't long until the music began and the bridal party slowly made their way down the isle. Almost all of them were friends or relatives of the bride aside from Collins. Next came the maid of honor who resembled a model, which caught Roger's eye, only to be smacked by April. "What?"
"I'm sitting right here."
"I was only looking…"
"Shhhh!" came a scolding whisper from both Mark and Maureen. Next came the bride. Alison looked like she was a professional at this; smiling perfectly, waving to her family and friends. Roger couldn't help but scorn at this fake Barbie doll who was ripping their once-moralistic friend away from them.
It was almost halfway through the service and Roger had lost all interest in what was taking place in front of him. April was slowly falling asleep, resting her head on Roger's shoulder. Maureen's attention was directed more towards the compact mirror in front of her as she adjusted her curls and confirmed her makeup still looked gorgeous and fresh. Mark seemed to be paying attention, or perhaps he was more interested in the camera he was holding up to film the event.
"This is boring."
"I told you it was going to be." Roger whispered back to his girlfriend.
"This would have been ten times better if we were high." April complained, keeping her voice just below a whisper.
"Well you should have said that before we got here. You know I would have!"
"Did you bring anything?"
"No, I'm all out. I was gonna buy more tomorrow."
"God, this sucks."
Taking his eyes off the camera for a moment, Mark shot Roger and April a look, non-verbally threatening them to shut up. Rolling his eyes and slouching back in his seat, Roger folded his arms and zipped his mouth.
The sound of clapping woke Roger with a slight jump, causing April, who was asleep on his shoulder, to wake as well. Looking around as he slowly came back into consciousness, Roger noticed that everyone was standing and clapping as the music led the bridal party down the isle. Slowly rising along with April, Roger began clapping unenthusiastically, relieved the boring part was over.