Author's Note: Thank you reviewers! I appreciate all of it! I don't own Rent.

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Chapter Two:

The walk was silent. Somewhere along the way, the girl gently withdrew her hand from Mark's to pull her hair back with a black band from around her wrist. Mark turned to really look at her. She was very pretty. She had medium brown hair that fell straight just past her shoulders. Her red-rimmed eyes were a warm shade of brown as well. She was dressed plainly enough, in jeans, a gray T-shirt and a black wool coat. She was petite and pale.

The girl looked over at Mark and caught him staring.

"What? Is something wrong?" Her voice was stronger now that she was feeling better.

"No!" Mark replied. "Uh…I'm sorry. I was just looking…"

Damn! That was lame.

She seemed to think so too because she turned really red and sped up slightly. Mark stopped walking. Should he just go? He had clearly embarrassed her. Maybe he shouldn't walk with her anymore. He didn't even know her name!

She turned back to him at a crosswalk and smiled nervously.

"Are you still coming?"

Mark looked up. She gestured her head up the street and shrugged her shoulders slightly.

Mark grinned and jogged to catch up with her. They didn't have much farther to go. Her building was just past the crosswalk.

"This is me." She said, waving her hand at a slightly rundown building. Mark blinked. She didn't live to far away from him. Close to the Life Café too, the tiny restaurant he frequented so often with his friends.

"Okay…" he trailed off. What now?

"Uh…thank you for walking me home. That was really nice of you…uhh…"

"Oh! Mark…my name is Mark. Mark Cohen."

"Hi, Mark. I'm Sophia. Sophia Hunter."

She smiled and held out her hand. Mark reached out and shook it lightly. It was still warm, even in this chilly weather. It made Mark smile for some reason.

"Well Mark, thank you again. You were really brave back there."

"Thank you. It was nice to meet you. I guess I'll see you around then?"

"Okay. Goodbye." And with that she headed up the steps to the door of her building. She looked back before going in. Mark gave her a little wave.

"Bye Sophia…" he said after she had already gone inside. Mark exhaled sharply. He still felt very tense. But something inside him said that it wasn't just the robbery anymore. He tried to shake the feeling off as he set off down the street back towards the loft. He really wanted to go home. Suddenly he stopped and smacked himself slightly on the forehead.

The food. I forgot about the groceries. Now I have to go back to the store. Great…

Mark grudgingly dragged himself back to Food Emporium and bought the food he had meant to get the first time around. It was late by the time he had made it back to the loft. Roger was sitting at the window, his head resting against the wall, his eyes closed. He looked tired. Roger had been staying up these past few nights with Mimi. Though she was doing a little better, Mimi was still very weak from the night she had nearly died. She was still going through withdrawal too. No one was willing to say it, but everyone knew that Mimi didn't have much time left. Mark and Roger were now trying to do everything they could to keep her comfortable, warm and happy. Mark had even returned to Buzzline, though he hadn't gotten paid yet.

"Hey Rog." Mark said quietly not wanting to disturb him or Mimi, who was probably sleeping.

Roger lifted up his head and looked at Mark.

"Hey." He relied hoarsely. "You left your camera behind." He pointed at the camera resting on the table.

"I know. I thought I would be quicker. I brought food."

"Thanks."

"How is she?"

"She's doing better today. She's just sleeping mostly."

"Good." Mark turned his attention to putting the food away. He wasn't sure of what to say. He and Roger had the same conversation everyday. Things had really changed since Christmas. Collins was in and out of town all the time and Maureen and Joanne kept to themselves mostly. They still went through their routine of breaking and making up. It didn't bother Mark though. It was nice to know that some things stayed the same. Everything was changing. Too many of his friends were leaving. Mark still missed Angel. He had really admired her. She had a way of just drawing people to her. Mark always felt so awkward socially and he had always looked up to Angel. She was so warm and friendly. Mimi too. He dreaded the day that they would lose Mimi.

"Mark? Are you okay? You look really pale." Roger broke into his train of thought.

"Huh? Yeah, I'm fine."

"What kept you so long?"

"Nothing really. I was just walking around a bit."

"Okay…" Roger said uncertainly. "I'm going to go check on Mimi. Thanks for buying the food. I really appreciate it."

Mark gave him a smile which dropped off his face the moment Roger exited the room. He felt very tired all of a sudden. He didn't know why he didn't tell Roger about what had happened. It really wasn't that big of a deal.

Forget it. He has enough to worry about. We all do.

After finishing putting away the food, Mark sat down in Roger's place at the windowsill. He leaned back and shut his eyes, just as Roger had. Everyone was tired. But the sun was nice on his face. It was warm, just as Sophia's hand had been.