Angel walked down the streets, carefully examining each shadowy alley and darkened stoop. He had been searching for Mimi for hours, and there was still no sign of her. Angel heard crying in the alley he was next to. Deciding to check it out, he walked cautiously down the alley. Angel found Mimi huddled behind a dumpster with a syringe filled with a black liquid, clearly heroin, in her hand. Mimi was on the verge of shooting up and throwing her recovery down the drain.
"Mimi, stop!" Angel exclaimed. Mimi's head shot up.
"Who are you?" she demanded. Angel knelt down in front of Mimi.
"I'm your best friend, Angel." Angel took the needle from Mimi. "Where did you get this?"
"Some man gave it to me. He's right over…he's gone!" Mimi glanced into the depths of the alley.
"What did he look like?"
"Really sleazy with brown hair in a ponytail." Angel took a deep breath. "He said that he knew me, and he gave me the needle and everything. Who is he?"
"Your old dealer." Angel helped Mimi get to her feet. "Come on; let's get you home, chica."
"Chica?"
"Yeah, it means-"
"Girl in Spanish, I know." Angel stopped. "It seems so familiar. It's so close…" Mimi shook her head. "It's gone."
"Don't worry; it'll come back to you." Mimi tucked a loose strand of hair behind her ear.
"Everyone's looking for me, aren't they?" Angel nodded.
"We're all worried about you; we're all one big family. We look after each other."
Angel guided Mimi over to her building, and they walked up the four flights of rickety steps to the loft.
As Angel slid open the door, he exclaimed, "Look what I found!" Everyone's head whipped around.
"Oh thank God," Roger breathed as he rushed over and wrapped his arms around Mimi. Mimi squirmed uncomfortably and pushed Roger away. "Are you okay? Did anyone hurt you?"
"I'm fine," Mimi insisted. "I want to go lie down, is that okay?"
"That's fine." Mimi glanced at everyone before retreating to the bedroom.
Once Mimi was gone, Angel told everyone what had happened. By the end, Roger was fuming.
"He tried to get her hooked on smack again!?" he demanded. "I'll kill the bastard!"
"Roger, please; keep your voice down. If Mimi hears you, she'll only blame herself," Joanne pointed out.
"It's not her fault though!"
"That's not the point! You need to appreciate that Angel found Mimi before anything bad could have happened." Roger ran his fingers through his hair. He took a deep breath to calm himself down and turned to face Angel.
"Thanks for finding her, Angel."
"You're welcome." The Bohemians didn't stay for too much longer, it was obvious that no one was really in a social mood.
When Roger quietly slipped into his and Mimi's bedroom a little while later, Mimi was lying on her back staring at the ceiling. Her bright eyes glowed in the limited lighting.
"I thought you went to bed," Roger said.
"I couldn't sleep." Mimi sat up. "I wasn't going to use the drugs." Roger leaned against the wall with his arms crossed over his chest.
"You heard?"
"Every word." Painful memories flooded Roger's mind. Mimi drew her knees to her chest. She seemed so small and confused. "I was just so lost and scared."
"Then why did you run?" Mimi shrugged.
"I don't know. I was frustrated, I guess. I wanted to go back, but I got lost."
"Alphabet City can do that to a person." Mimi stifled a yawn. "You should get some rest; you've had a rough day." Mimi nodded.
"Where are you going to sleep?"
"I was hoping to sleep on the floor in here if that's okay with you."
"I thought that the floor was disgusting." Roger shrugged.
"I'll live." Roger got Mimi a pair of sweatpants and a tank top. "Here, these are for you to sleep in. The bathroom is two rooms over." Mimi took the clothes.
"Thanks."
"No problem." Mimi paused for a second before going to the bathroom to get changed.
When Mimi got back to the bedroom, Roger was in boxers and a gray sleeveless shirt. He grabbed a tattered quilt out of the closet and spread it out on the floor. Mimi could see why she would date Roger. His arms were ripped tight with strong muscles. His dirty blonde waves fell in his face as he set up his bed. Mimi entered the room completely and put her dirty clothes in the closet. Then, she sat perched on the edge of the bed.
"Roger, can I ask you a question?" she asked tentatively. Roger rolled back onto his heels.
"Sure."
"Do you have HIV too?" Roger let out a sigh.
"Yeah, I do; a tainted needle."
"Oh, I'm sorry." Roger stood up.
"Stop saying that, none of this is your fault. If anything, I should be the one apologizing." Mimi kicked her legs back and forth.
"Apologize to me, why?"
"We got into a major fight; you were, uh, in the mood to take a shower together." Roger rubbed the back of his neck. "If I had been here, in the shower with you, I could have prevented this." Mimi got up and approached Roger. Guilt was written across her face.
"If it's not my fault, then it's definitely not yours. Please don't blame yourself." Roger longed to grab Mimi and kiss her passionately. Mimi could sense this and took a step backwards. "Well, I guess we should, uh, go to bed. Goodnight."
"Yeah, goodnight." Roger waited until Mimi was in bed before turning off the light and going to be himself.