Chapter 3: Don't Want to Lose You Now
Disclaimer: In the last week days I did not acquire rights to any of the characters. Swear
Authors Note: Thank you again all that reviewed...
"Room 23... Room 23…" Roger muttered too himself, quickly moving down the hall. He dodged meal carts, nurses, crash carts, and god knows what else. The amount of crap filling up the hall forced him to slow down; that and the fact that he almost took out one nurse.
He kept running. He could feel his heart rate accelerate. He was so close to the edge between sanity and insanity; he was so close to freaking out. But he kept going for Mark. If it was him, the John Doe in room 23, Roger needed to be there with him.
Flashback
Roger held the hand of the once lively spirited girl lying on the bed. Yet as her body gave up to a disease that had haunted it for years, the life that once ran through her left. She had been pronounced dead 20 minutes ago, and Roger still held her hand. He held her for most of her 4 day stay at the hospital, and he didn't let go of her as she left him.
Roger didn't talk for almost a full three days after Mimi's death. He knew he was making Mark nervous and worried for him, but he had no words to say to him or to anyone else.
One afternoon while idly strumming his guitar, the words he needed to say came to him.
"Mark?" He croaked one evening on that third day, his voice harsh and raw from the lack of use
"Yeah Rog?" Mark replied, his eyes lighting up at the sound of his best friends voice
"I need you to promise me something" Roger said, quietly. He saw the look of confusion cross the filmmaker's face at this request.
"Anything Roger, you know I'd do anything for you" Mark said, his voice came out a little more excited than he would have liked it to.
"When I die..." Roger started, Mark visibly cringed. Mark hated talking about Roger's death; he would usually interrupt and say 'we'll cross that bridge when we meet it.' This time Mark didn't interrupt, he still cringed, but he let Roger keep talking.
"When I die, I know you will be there, but can you please just hold my hand. I want to know your there the whole time." Roger said. There was surprisingly little emotion in that morbid sentence. "I'm a little scared"
"Of course I will" Mark replied. Looking distraught, but still happy his friend had finally spoken
End flashback
He had to find him. Although Roger never promised that he would be by his friend's side holding his hand, he still had to be there. Mark would want him to, even if he never said it.
So Roger kept running. He kept glancing up at the rooms to try and orient him and figure out where he was so he didn't miss the room that might be holding his best friend.
"ROGER" his named vibrated through the hall and caused him to stop dead in his tracks. He stood there for probably a full 30 seconds trying to figure out who that was. He knew instantaneously that it wasn't Mark, and since Mark was his only concern right now, his mind was completely blank on other people, and therefore who the voice belonged too.
"HEY! Earth to Davis! I was wondering what took you bitches so long. Where's the cameraman?" Came Tom Collin's voice from one of the rooms Roger was now standing right in front of. For one wild second Roger thought maybe Collins had heard and was looking for Mark as well. Then Roger remembered the reason he wasn't in the loft at the time of the fire.
Without knowing what else to do Roger walked into the room that contained his sick friend. He stared blankly at him and had no idea what to even begin to say to the man in the bed in front of him.
"Dude, I don't look that bad. What's going on?" Collins said seeing his friend's disturbed look.
"Mark…" Roger started. Then he stopped. How could he possible explain what was going on at this very second? What if Collin's yelled at him? If he didn't panic, if he and Mark went to go see Collin's right away, this wouldn't have happened. He just had to freak out didn't he? That freak out could cost him his best friend's life
"Where is he?" Collins said, suddenly very serious. Roger only remembered hearing that tone in Collins voice once, and he had not heard it in a long time. He heard that tone once during Roger's withdrawal period. A period in time that Roger did not even want to think about, for Collins had used that tone when he was scared Roger had hurt the smaller filmmaker.
"Fire. Missing. Room 23 maybe" Roger stuttered very fast. Then he shot Collins a look that he hoped explained more than his words had before saying "I'm sorry, I'll be back" and darting back out of the hospital room.
"ROGER" Collins yelled after him, but Roger didn't slow down.
This time nothing was going to deter him from getting to room 23 and hopefully finding his best friend.
He realized room 23 was in critical care. Or at least that's what the sign leading into the hallway said. Although Roger wasn't the most intelligent of guys, he knew the word "critical" could not possibly be a good thing. He dodged others in the hall and finally found the room he was looking for. The door was shut and the curtains were drawn. Roger took a deep breath before reaching for the door knob.
"Mark…" Roger moaned. There was no questioning it; the pale horribly injured man in room 23 was his best friend. John Doe was Mark Cohen. Taking in his friend's state, Roger inhaled sharply. His friend's eyes were closed. A respirator was inserted into his mouth and various bandages covered the parts of his body that was exposed.
Roger's low moan caught the attention of the doctors and nurses in the room. There were about 5 and they were standing and comparing notes and assessing Mark.
"Sir, do you know this man?" one of the nurses asked.
"Yes, his name is Mark. Mark Cohen." How Roger managed to get the words out was beyond him.
"Sir, are you family" the nurse asked again
"Yes. I'm his brother" Roger lied. He had lied about relationships before, but there was something different about lying this time.
Roger had lied before to be told Mimi's condition. He told them they were married, that Mimi was his wife. He knew Collins lied once about Angel. Sometimes they had to, sometimes they didn't. They always did anyway, just so they wouldn't be thrown out of the room. They always said they were each others family anyway.
However this time it was different. Roger didn't feel like he lied. Roommates, best friends, but these terms did not give his relationship with Mark justice. They were brothers.
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