In the morning, Maureen woke up and Mark was gone. She knew he would leave. She rolled out of bed, drank a glass of water, and called the loft.
"SPEEAAK," Droned their irritating answering machine.
"Mark, it's Mo. Please come down here as soon as you can…I miss you and I'm hungry. Maybe we can all go to the Life? For lunch, possibly? ROGER! I know you're sitting there, moping cause Mimi's not over giving you a lap dance. HAHA just kidding. Put the guitar down and come tell me where Marky is. Please?"
Roger, sure enough was sitting, moping on the couch, fiddling with the guitar. He pulled himself off the old, tattered sofa and walked over to the phone. "Maureen? Mark went to buy you food. He said he'd bring it over there at about 2, cause he said you wouldn't be up until then."
"Oh." Maureen was overwhelmed with emotion flooding her body at this act of affection. "Thanks, Rog. See ya later."
Roger dragged himself back to the couch and began to mope again, but there was a knock at the door right as he sat down. He walked over to the door and slid it open. Collins was standing there. "Happy Thursday, Bitch!" He exclaimed. Roger laughed as the tall, lean man walked into the loft. "Hey…did you hear about Mark and Maureen? I went over to Mo's apartment last night to ask her opinion on something, and there they were, sitting on the couch, making out like there was no tomorrow. It was great. I don't even think they heard me come in. Oh shit…what about Joanne? What will she do to Maureen?" Collins was suddenly afraid for Maureen. Joanne was known for beating Maureen when she did something that Joanne didn't like.
"Didn't you hear, dude? She left. She got pissed at Mo for some reason that no one knows; I don't think even Mark knows. Anyway, she hit Maureen, walked into their bedroom, packed, and left for California the next day. Maureen was crushed." Roger told Collins everything he knew that Mark would tell him.
"Wow. That's intense. How do you know all that?" Collins inquired.
"Come on, man you can't be serious. Isn't it obvious that Markeen is back from the dead?" Roger rolled his eyes. "I live with Mark, remember?"
Markeen was the nickname that Roger and Collins made up when Maureen and Mark had dated the first time.
"Oh yeah," Collins remembered now. "That's why they were making out!" Collins could be so blonde sometimes.
There was a rap on the door, and Mark let himself into the loft. "Oh, hey Col, what's new? Rog, did any one call?"
"Yeah, Maureen wanted you to come over ASAP." Roger said in reply, slightly making fun of Mark.
Mark blushed on impulse as Roger teased him. "Okay, I'll go over right now and give her the groceries." Mark mentioned the five paper bags he was holding onto for dear life. He ran into the bathroom, checked his hair, and then split, heading for the subway station.
Ten minutes later, he arrived at Maureen's apartment. Mark didn't bother to knock; he just let himself into the room. He found the beautiful girl asleep on the couch. Mark quietly walked over to the table sitting in the corner, set the grocery bags down with a grunt, and sat on the couch near Maureen's head. He stroked the length of her hair, from the top of her head to her shoulders. She awoke with a start, sitting straight up, yelping a little bit. She saw Mark and fell into his chest, taking in his scent.
"Good morning to you, too," Mark laughed.
"Good morning, Pookie. Why did you leave last night? I missed you." Maureen put on a smallish pout.
"Reeny…" Mark was hesitant to say what he did next, because he didn't know how Maureen would react. "I don't think we should sleep together just yet. I need time to know that I can trust you not to do anything with anyone else, aka cheat on me again. Can I trust you?" Mark let out a huge breath, glad that that was off his chest.
"Yes, of course, baby. You can trust me." Maureen wouldn't look Mark in the eye. He knew she was lying. "Maureen, look me in the eyes and tell me that I can trust you," Mark said firmly. She couldn't do it.
"Until you can look me straight in the eyes and tell me that you won't cheat on me, I will not sleep in the same bed with you. I will live here, I will take care of you, and if you want me to stay here through the night, I will sleep on the couch." Mark winced. That came off rougher than he had planned.
Maureen's lower lip quivered, and tears started running down her cheeks. She looked at him wildly. "I thought you loved me," She sobbed.
"I do, Maureen, with all of my heart, but I need to be the only person that you love." Maureen looked at him in disbelief. "You don't believe me?" Mark asked. "Here, let me prove it." He grabbed her around the waist, pulled her to his body, and furiously kissed Maureen hard on the mouth. The kiss became fierier, more intense as they rubbed each other's backs and Mark grabbed Maureen's ass. He suddenly pulled back harshly. "See? A kiss on the lips means 'I love you.' I love you more than life Maureen, but if you can't commit to me and only to me, I will not have sex with you. I'm sorry." Mark was astonished that he had actually said that out loud. To his own disappointment, he fell apart and began to cry.
Maureen looked at Mark timidly. "Baby? Mark, look at me. Please." The last word came out in a whisper as she started to cry again. Mark looked gently at Maureen. "Yes?" His tone of voice was cold and hard, did not match his expression. Maureen cringed. She looked into his gorgeous ice blue eyes. "You can trust me. I love you."