Tried to update sooner this time...but unfortunately, I couldn't find enough inspiration for this chapter, and its rather...thin. I think that it was just something that had to be written, not something that I really wanted to express, and thats why... but here it is, please review. I'm not exactly sure where I'm going after this...but expect more filler pages for a little bit, before the plot really gets going.
Don't own RENT, Mark, Roger, or Alphabet City. I do own my characters and a bootleg copy of The Dark Knight...hehehe
All's Well that Ends Well
Mark took a deep breath as he stepped down into the cafe. Reye looked up as soon as the door shut, a cautious smile on her face as he walked over to the counter.
"Hey Mark." she said carefully.
"What ´s with calling me Mark, Miss Reye?¨ he asked with a smile.
A look of slight relief crossed her face, but she still sounded cautious. "What´s with you being nice? You should hate me right now...after everything...I would...Marshall told me how upset you were, I wasn´t sure if you´d ever come back...But I´m really glad to see you."
His smile faltered just a bit, but he remained friendly. "A pack of wild horses wouldn´t be able to keep me away from my favorite teeny-bopper." he joked.
She laughed and then there was a slightly awkward pause, a pure rarity for them.
Finally, Reye sighed. "Look Sweettooth...I´m sorry...really I am...I don´t know what I was thinking- doing up when you were there- I never should have done that around you...knowing what you´ve been through..." she trailed off, sounding honestly uncomfortable.
Mark looked at her levelly. "Whether or not I´m there doesn´t matter...its that you´re doing it at all." he took a hard breath. "...Seriously Reye, how can you do it? How can you think its a good idea?"
She sighed. "Its hard to explain, Sweettooth...I know I should have told you that I did it a long time ago... but I was afraid to... I was afraid of your history with it...I was afraid that you´d stop being my friend if you knew that I used..." she stopped and shrugged. "...I was also planning to tell you, I really was...eventually... And I really am sorry about how you found out."
"Is that what you really think of me, Miss Reye? You think that I am that judgemental? ...I will never stop being your friend just because of heroin...If that was enough to drive me away, I would have stopped being friends with Roger when he was an addict... I just hate it, and I can´t stand the thought that you do it..." he stopped and caught her gaze. "I want you to stop...please, for me?"
She was silent for a moment, then shook her head. "No, I´m sorry Sweettooth...Don´t be upset with me, I still love you... You´re my friend, and I care about what you think...but I´m not going to give it up ...Its not that I´m addicted, its not that I can´t stop...its that I don´t want to. I´m not ready to give it up yet... I know you can´t understand...but if you ever tried it, you would. I´m not going to do it forever...but right now, I want to. ...Please, cant you just let it go?"
Mark felt a wave of anger rise up in him before being beat down by a stronger wave of resignation. He couldn´t believe Reye was being so stubborn about something so dangerous...but he already knew that Marshall was right about her, and that she´d never stop if it wasn´t what SHE wanted...she really was stubborn like that.
He sighed. "I´m never going to be okay with it...but I´m not about to turn my back on you. When you're ready to stop, you tell me, and I'll help you."
She sighed. "Alright...but I'm telling you, when I'm ready to go straight, I won't need you...I won't get addicted...if I ever do, then you can force me to stop."
There was another awkward silence, before Reye caught his gaze and gave him a hard look. "You know, its strange that you're still my friend when I'm going to keep using and you broke up with Marshall when he offered to stop." he easily heard the accusation in her voice, but couldn't say anything. "...He really will stop, you know...he never used that much anyways...He's really upset, you know...he really likes you."
Mark sighed and nodded. "I know...and I've thought about this a lot. I'm going to talk to him."
Reye smiled approvingly and quickly pulled out a scrap of paper and pen. "Well, what're you waiting for, write him a note!" she urged.
Mark laughed. Grabbing the paper, he thought a moment before scrawling:
Marshall,
I've thought about you...us...and I've made a decision. Meet me outside the cafe tomorrow night, 7pm?
Mark
"Don't read it!" Mark warned, folding it up and handing it to the barista.
She grinned toothily at him. "Oh, like I'm the type to get into other people's business. I'm offended."
LINELINELINELINELINELINELINELINELINE
Mark smiled softly as they walked down towards their favorite Chinese restaurant, fingers entwined. In the end, Marshall had needed no explanation, and Mark had needed no further apology. They had only spoken for a few moments before the awkwardness melted away and, with one lingering kiss, things were back to normal.
They ate good Chinese food, and talked for hours, and neither the subject of heroin nor his or Reye's past/present usage of it was ever brought up.
In the end, Mark couldn't force himself to talk about it. He knew he couldn't forget...but he could put off thinking about it for a while, in the very least. Marshall wasn't going to use anymore, that was the most important thing in terms of his relationships. He could work on Reye...she was still very young, she would make quite a few mistakes in these years; he had no doubt that she would recover from her naivety before she had a chance to ruin her life. He knew there was a slight risk in trusting Marshall's word that he wouldn't use...and in continuing to be around the drug that had so badly affected his life...but he already trusted Marshall more than anyone...and it wasn't like he had much better options in friends. He'd rather be around Marshall and Reye, both high out of their minds, than a completely lucid Roger anyday.
It was this realization that really made him start analyzing what was left of his relationship with Roger. They'd been best friends for years, and now Roger treated him like shit, more often than not. He tried to shrug it off...had been trying for a while now, but now he was realizing that he just couldn't anymore. He had to confront Roger.
LINELINELINELINE
So thats it for now. Sorry that its so incredibly short...I just needed to get this out of my system. I should update...within the month. If I don't, feel free to bitch me out over e-mail ;)
