Chapter 4:
Mimi, Angel, and Andie were so caught up in their work that they didn't hear Mark come home several hours later. He simply stood in the doorway until Angel realized that they weren't alone.
"How'd it go?" she asked him. He shrugged.
"We got a lot done, but it was still really hard on my parents. Cindy and Harry had set up a trust-fund for both Becky and Andie that they can touch when they're 18, and I'll be getting child support from the government to help pay for everything. All of the funeral arrangement have been made too. It's going to be Saturday. Then, we get back to our lives the best that we can." Angel gave Mark a hug.
"Remember, we're here for you," she told him.
Mimi said from where she was sitting on Andie's bed, "Just not right now. I have a double shift tonight, so I have to go and get some rest." Mark smiled as Mimi gave both him and Andie a hug, and slipped out of the room. Angel looked at her watch, and gift from Collins on her past birthday.
"I should probably go too. Collins is going to be home from work soon, and he wanted to go out to eat or something."
"Don't forget that you said that you'd make me some curtains!" Andie announced.
"I didn't chica. I'll get on them tomorrow. Mark, your niece is a doll. Everyone's going to love her. We should all get together in a few weeks once things settle down."
"What? Oh, yeah. I guess I'll see you later Angel. Thank you so much for keeping an eye on Andie."
"Any time! Bye!" Angel waltzed out of the loft humming a song. Mark smiled, typical Angel behavior.
"I like them," Andie said once they were alone. She flopped down on her bed. Mark looked around. They trio had gotten a lot done. All of Andie's clothes here hanging up in her closet or folded neatly in her drawers. Her books, which had been delivered early that day while Mark was gone, were on her bookshelf. The room was about medium sized. The bed and the nightstand were on the far wall. Directly across from them was the dresser, while the bookshelf was on the wall adjacent to the bed. On the bed was a flowered coverlet that Mark had never seen before.
"Where did the bed spread come from?" Mark asked as he sat down next to his niece.
"Mimi had it in her closet. She said that her Mom made it for her when she was a little girl, and since she can't have any kids, she wanted me to have it. Angel's going to make some curtains that match it."
"That's good. Your room looks nice."
"Thank you. Uncle Mark, why can't Mimi have any kids? Is she sick? She doesn't seem like it." Mark sighed. He should have explained everything to Andie.
"Yes, Mimi is sick. Just like Roger, Angel, and Collins." He quickly added, "but don't worry, you can't catch it." When he saw her worried face.
"Are they going to get better? I saw Mimi take some medicine. Will that make her better?"
"No. The medicine is just keeping her healthy longer. There is no cure for their sickness I'm afraid." Andie looked at her lap, clearly a little upset.
"Oh." Mark gave her a hug.
"Don't worry about them. They're healthy right now, so you can enjoy being with them. I'm sure someone's going to find a cure soon, and they'll be back to normal." Mark didn't believe his own words, but knew that that was what Andie needed to hear at that moment.
Andie and Mark grew closer throughout that whole week. Mark didn't make her go to school until the following week, so she could get settled, and get used to her new life. On her first day back to school, they rode the subway into the city to get to her school. Andie grabbed Mark's hand, and led him to her classroom at the far end of the school.
"Come on!" she exclaimed as she pulled him through the masses of children. She stopped outside the door to her classroom to put her belongings away on the hooks lining the hallway. Mark slipped inside to talk to the teacher.
"You must be Andie's Uncle," a young, red headed women said when he approached her. "Alicia Murray, I'm your nieces teacher," she said as she extended her hand. Mark shook it.
"Mark Cohen."
"How's Andie doing?"
"She's doing pretty well. She's settled in, and she was pretty good at the funeral. This has been pretty hard on her, especially not living with her sister anymore. Andie adores Becky."
"I know. It'll do her some good to get away from her for a while. Now, Mr. Cohen-"
"Mark, please, I hate formalities like that."
"Okay, Mark. Have you gone down to the office and made sure that your new address and phone number are in there?"
"Yes ma'am. I did that last week. Umm…I'd like to tell you that I have a meeting this afternoon that my former-employer wouldn't let me reschedule, so my best friend's girlfriend will be picking Andie up from school today. It's just a one-time thing."
"Okay. If you tell me her name, I can let the office know."
"Mimi Marquez."
"What about Mimi?" Andie asked Mark from behind him.
"Mimi's going to pick you up from school today, because I have a meeting that I can't get out of. Is that alright?" Andie nodded excitedly. She loved Mimi and Angel.
"Will I get to go to her house?"
"No, I want you to go home, and don't you dare think about asking Mimi, she already knows that she has to take you straight home." A bell rang, warning students that class was going to start soon. Mark kissed the top of Andie's head.
At 3 o'clock sharp, Mimi walked into Andie's classroom. She was wearing a pair of tight-fitting blue jeans, a red halter-top, and a denim blazer.
"Mimi!" Andie exclaimed as she ran towards her friend. Mimi scooped the child up in a hug.
"Why don't you get your stuff so we can get home? I don't know about you, but I'm starving. We're going out to the Life Café for dinner when everyone's done with work."
"Okay." Andie skipped out to the hallway to retrieve her belongings.
"You must be Mimi Marquez. I'm Andie's teacher Alicia Murray." Mimi shook Alicia's hand.
"Nice to meet you. I'm sure I'll see you again, I might pick up Andie if Mark's working later than he expected or something."
"Well, then I look forward to seeing you again. I must say Andie is a joy. She's so upbeat during such hard times. I'm sure Mark has something to do with that. I don't mean to be nosey, but does he have children of his own?"
"Nope. Mark's been single for a few years now. My boyfriend, who's also his best friend, says that he's married to his work, or should marry that camera of his." Mrs. Murray laughed. Andie joined Mimi and Mrs. Murray. She had on a solid red hoodie with a picture of Winnie the Pooh on it, and a solid blue backpack was slung on her back. "Ready to go? I saw Angel a few hours ago, and she said that she was almost done with those curtains of yours." Andie's face lit up.
"Really? Let's go!" Mimi waved over her shoulder as she was pulled out of the classroom.
Andie spent the entire ride home telling Mimi about school. Mimi was thrilled that she loved school so much. Maybe if she had loved school so much as a child, she would have gone to college. Andie's voice snapped Mimi back to reality.
"What stop are we?" she asked as they pulled into a rundown station. Mimi looked at the signs outside.
"Next one, so get your stuff together. I want you to remember what station we get off at. It's called 'Alphabet City', okay?" Andie nodded as she repeated the station name.
"Alphabet City. Got it." When the train pulled into the station, Mimi grabbed Andie's hand, and led her up to the street above. The stop on the outskirts of Alphabet City was new, but it was used quite a bit. It was a lot cheaper than trying to catch a cab that would take you this far into Bohemia (and a lot easier), and it was better than walking from the nearest stop, which was almost a mile away.
Andie rushed up to her apartment to see if Angel had hung up her curtains in her room. She let out a squeal when she saw the lavender curtains with pink flowers along the bottom.
"They're so pretty!" she cried out as she jumped up and down. Mimi laughed. It didn't take much to float her boat.
"Okay missy. Now I suggest that you get all your homework done before Mark gets home, so you can come with us to the Life Café," she said from the kitchen. "I'm sure you have some food or something too." Mimi opened the cabinet, and noticed a boatload of junk food. That meant that either Mark had gotten the job, and had managed to stop by before Andie got home, or Angel had a really good day on the street (which was happening more and more often), and had provided the food. Mimi looked around for something with some nutritional value, but soon settled on a bag of potato chips. She opened up the bag, and set it in the center of the large, metal table Mark and Roger still hadn't gotten rid of. Andie sat down, and began to do her work. Mimi watched in fascination. The girl's motivation to do well on her work got her thinking. Maybe she could back to school. Sure, she had talked about it a few years ago, but then she was a user. Now, she had been clean for almost two years. She might as well go to school, and get a real job. She might be able to quit her job at the CatScratch Club, and get away from those perverted lonely men every night. That was her real dream, and she knew that Roger didn't like her job all that much either.
A/N: This is the last chapter with Andie as a young child. I'm really excited for upcoming chapters. There's going to be a lot going on. You're going to get an outsider's opinion on Bohemia (this should be interesting) Until next time!
Tina101