Hmmph I hate homework. So I am ignoring it and posting for you. My next post will probably be tomorrow or the day after. The faster you review, the faster I post.

By the way: This chapter picks up exactly where the last chapter left off, with the movie.

The Point of No Return

There was a soft, romantic song playing in the background. The first shot was of Maureen, four years earlier. She was sitting on the couch, looking very tired. She looked up at the camera and smiled. She had on a large sweatshirt and Mark's pajama pants on her small body.

The next shot was of Maureen, dressed up in a black cocktail dress. She was holding a high-heeled stiletto up to her mouth and she was singing into it. The music slowly faded with the picture. The last thing seen on the screen was her big, pink colored lips.

The next shot came up on Maureen walking down the street, skipping. Mark was filming from the window.

"I don't even know what date it is," his voice sighed. "I don't care anymore, Maureen is gone."

The next shot was of Maureen's protest. She was standing on the stage, smiling her biggest smile. She laughed and waved to the camera. The next shot went into her sitting on Allison's father's lap at the Life Café.

The next shot was current. It was her sleeping. She had her lips in a straight line. Her eyes were delicately closed. She had the large quilt wrapped around her tightly. She opened her eyes and glared at the camera.

"Out," she yelled. Mark laughed from behind the camera.

She smiled, blew a kiss, and pulled the covers over her head.

The scene faded and Maureen came up on the screen. She was dancing around the living room. Other people were in the background, but the camera was focused on her.

Half of Mark's face and half of Maureen's face came into view. Mark was holding the camera at arm's length, trying to get both of them into the shot.

"Hi everybody," Maureen giggled.

"Who are you saying hi to?" Mark asked.

"Anyone who is watching," she laughed.

Mark turned and kissed her deeply. The camera fell out of Mark's hand and landed gently on the floor. The shot was sideways and it revealed the couple' feet. Maureen had on fuzzy, pink slippers. Mark was wearing old, white socks. The camera finally went black and the next shot came up on the old couch, held together by duck tape and the will of God.

Mark's hands came in front of the camera lens and the camera zoomed in slightly. Then, he ran, fast towards the couch and sat down. He was holding black and white roses.

"Hi Maureen," he said, nervously. "I bought you these flowers to represent your protest about the cow. Than, Roger made fun of me, so I decided to get you something meaningful. I know how you like to be the center of attention, so I thought, 'what would be better than a video all about you?' So I made this tape and stuck together some of the best moments of you ever captured on film. Of course, a mere tape cannot catch the beauty and significance of you. I guess what I am trying to say is……….." He stopped and swallowed loudly. "I love you Maureen. I am not just saying it like I used to. I really, really love you. I love the way you are always in my mind and how when I see you I swoon. I love the way how you always keep me guessing. I feel like going insane, with a fire in my brain, and I am always think of drinking gasoline sometimes when you do things that drive me crazy, but…………….." He stopped again and blushed. "I love every minute of it. I have no more juice in my battery," he said suddenly. He stood up and came closer to the camera.

"Happy Valentine's Day Maur, I love you."

The screen went black and soft, sweet music played as words began to pop up onto the screen.

Maureen

Happy Valentine's Day

Love, Mark

Maureen turned to look at her boyfriend.

"Sorry it was short," he said, "I kinda had to rush when I was making it."

"Mark," she said slowly. "I loved it."

"Really?" he asked his face lighting up.

"I love you Pookie," she said, kissing him. Then she pulled away, "I mean Mark." He smiled and began to kiss her some more as she pushed him back onto the couch.

o o o o o

Roger sat on the comfortable chairs, provided at the jewelry store. Maya was walking around, looking in the glass boxes that contained the sparking diamonds. The glass was spotless and bright lights hit the stones, making them shine brilliantly. The diamonds she was looking at were the kind that people only dreamed about buying. She glanced over at the old, blonde haired lady in the red suit. She had on a Valentine's Day pin and was talking rapidly to a customer in a fur coat. Maya suddenly felt out of place in the store. She looked at Roger, but he had his eyes glued to the floor.

"Well hello," the lady said in a sing-song, motherly voice. "I am Trisha. What can I do for you today?"

"Roger," Maya called. Roger looked up and immediately bolted to the girl's side, as if he was trained.

"We are looking for a diamond engagement ring for my girlfriend," said Roger. Maya giggled lightly, because it sounded as if he had rehearsed it millions of times. She then stopped smiling and remembered all the times Roger was going to attempt to ask Mimi to be his bride. He most likely did practice his jeweler speech a million times. Maya didn't even want to think about how long he was going to practice his proposal speech.

"Well you have come to the right place," she smiled. She brought them over to a glass display. "What is your budget sir?"

Roger stared at her. He had never been called "sir" before. "Two thousand."

Maya looked at him. The lady walked away.

"Where did you get 2,000?" she asked.

"Trust me," he sighed. "It isn't a lot. I have been saving it for a long time. I wanted to spend much more on her, but I didn't have the time."

"You could be using this money for rent," she sighed.

"Rent isn't everything Maya," he looked at her and smiled. "There are more important things in life."

The lady came back with a large book.

"Okay," the lady said. "What do you think would suit the lucky woman's needs?"

"Lucky," Roger thought. He began to realize just how lucky he was to have her.

o o o o o

Mimi hated hospitals. She hated the smell of disinfectant. She hated the white, which was everywhere. One day she wanted to come in and paint everything a certain color. She wasn't sure what color, but anything but white would do. She also hated the fake cheer everyone had plastered on their faces. It reminded Mimi of high school where you pretended to be everyone's friend, but behind their back, called them "sluts" or "whores." In Mimi's case though, they were going behind her back and saying, "She doesn't have much time left."

Mimi yawned. She was so bored. Earlier in the evening a group of Girl Scouts had come and brought candy. They were so happy and sang songs in the lobby. Mimi heard them and wished she was out there. She wished she was a Girl Scout, still.

I came from Spain with broken English when I was about 12. The kids in my school used to talk behind my back. I heard them. The first day to school, I remember I had to explain myself.

"This is Mariana Marquez," the teacher said. "Tell us about yourself Mariana."

"I came from Spain con mi Mama, mi Tia, mi Papa, y mi abuelo. Yo tengo un gato y"-

I was cut off by the teacher, who was laughing. "Try not to break into Spanish please, we speak English here," she said.

I didn't know how to say I came from Spain with my mom, my aunt, my dad, and my grandfather. I didn't know how to tell the kids I had a cat, who I loved more than anything. So I just stood there and said the few things I knew how to say in English.

"My name is Mariana, I came from Spain, and I like to dance."

The teacher seemed pleased, so I took my seat.

There was a tall, skinny, blonde haired girl who sat next to me. She was one of the girl's whom you wanted to hate immediately, but you couldn't help but love. She was one of the girls I wanted to become best friends with, but I would always hate being with her.

"Do you eat food?" she asked rudely.

"Yes," I said.

"You should eat with us," she said. "I'm Hannah."

I smiled and felt welcomed. That was until my fourth month in school, where I knew English very well and started making friends.

Hannah taught me all there was to know. She told me Girl Scouts was the best club ever. She said once you became a cheerleader, you automatically became a slut. She said dancing and singing was useless. She said guys don't like girls who can play sports. She also told me never to eat the meat from the cafeteria, because it had spiders in it. I believed every word and followed her every command.

There was this boy who I absolutely loved. His name was Fred. He had long blonde hair and blue eyes. He was the ideal American boy.

One day, he asked me to a dance. I said yes. I was so excited. That day, was the day I was about to sign up for Girl Scouts, too. Hannah was in it and her mom was the troop leader, so I knew I was definitely going to make it. I went home after school to practice my lines.

"On my honor, I will try, to serve God and my country and to……..to…………..to……" I began to stutter. I looked at my mom for help. She simply stared down at the sheet I had given her to make sure my lines were correct. I stuck my tongue out in concentration, which was a cue for my mother to help.

"Ayudas personas a todos tiempos," she said, starting the next line for me.

"Right," I said. "To help people at all times," after that, the rest of the speech kicked in, "and to live by the Girl Scout law."

"Muy bien," she clapped.

My aunt Mercedes walked into the room and held up her car keys.

"Ready?" she asked. I kissed my mother and hopped into the car.

"Wait here," I told my aunt and I went into the building to recite the Girl Scout Promise.

"Hi Hannah," I said. She gave me a dirty look and frowned.

"You are dating my brother," she said.

"Your who?" I asked, beginning to notice the other girls staring at me.

"Fred, my brother! You are such a whore. You are fat, ugly, and stupid. I hate you. Why would you do that?" Hannah's mother glared at me and pointed to the door.

"There is no room for Spanish girls in this troop. How about you go back to your country?" the mother said coldly. I ran out of the room crying. Never had anyone insulted me that badly.

"What is wrong?" my aunt cried as I got into the car.

"Oh Tia Mercedes! Hannah dice mi gorda, fea, y estupida! Hannah's mama dice mi ir a Spain. Me no gusta Girl Scouts." I cried in Spanish. I knew what I was saying sounded babyish, but I didn't care. My aunt drove me home and put me in my room. She told my mother what happened. The two drove back to the building and gave Hannah's mom a double Spanish nightmare, I assume. I didn't care.

To this day, I still don't know why Hannah reacted the way she did. It was immature and I knew it.

Just to piss her off, I continued dating her brother and I joined the cheerleading squad. I was named captain and head dancer. All the guys began to notice me and I got my first kiss in seventh grade, which was earlier than all the other girls. I was later called horrible names, which went past the limits of "whore" and "slut," but I didn't care. I had made a whole new group of preppy, cheerleader friends. I was happy, but every time I heard about Girl Scouts or saw the troop get badges, I felt pain. I wanted to be the girl in green, accepting a citizenship award. I never did, though. I just continued dancing and slipping farther and farther into a point of no return.

"Excuse me?" said a small voice, which jolted Mimi from her thoughts. A small oriental girl with bright pink braces was standing in the doorway. Her hair was in pigtails and she had on a green Girl Scout vest.

"Can I help you?" Mimi asked, sitting up.

"Do you want any sugar treats?" she asked in a rehearsed voice.

"Are you with the Girl Scouts," she asked.

"Yes, I am Demaris." the girl said, walking in. "I am a junior Girl Scout."

"What grade are you in?" she asked the girl, who had sat down at the end of the bed.

"Sixth," she said. "Why are you alone on Valentine's Day?"

"My boyfriend should be coming later. Do you have a valentine?"

"No," the girl blushed. "Guys really don't like metal mouths."

"That is not true," Mimi laughed. "You just need to confront guys. They are insecure. You need to take control."

The girl laughed.

"Why are you in the hospital?" she asked, handing Mimi a pre-made bag of candy.

"I was kind of poisoned," Mimi laughed. "Long story."

"Are you allowed to walk?" she asked eagerly.

"I think," Mimi said. "Why?"

"Well," she said, "I was wondering if you wanted to come down to the cafeteria with me."

Mimi thought about how she hated cafeteria food and always did. Then she looked at the small girl. No one should be alone on Valentine's Day.

"Sure," Mimi said, climbing out of bed and of bed and followed Demaris downstairs.

o o o o o

"One year, Maureen gave me a rose she had gotten from another man on Valentine's Day," Joanne said. "I hated her for it, but I remember keeping that flower near me for the rest of the night."

"Great," David said, sounding bored.

"Sorry," she blushed. "I am talking too much about the past."

David laughed and reached out to touch Joanne's hair. It was in a bun as usual. He gently took the clip off and let her hair fall around her shoulders.

"Your hair got long," he said.

"Does it look bad?" she asked.

"No," he smiled.

"Maureen used to tell me that she liked it short, so I always kept it short and when I kicked her out"-

"Joanne," David said placing a hand on hers. "You need to stop thinking about her."

"Sorry," Joanne said. "It is just so hard to-"

"Well then get back together with her," David said bitterly. The couple was sitting on a small white boat, cruising down the Hudson River. Joanne leaned her head on David's shoulder.

"I kicked her out for a reason. If I still loved her, I would still be with her."

"You sure seem to have feeling for her still, because she is all you have been talking about for the past 24 hours."

"I guess the holiday is just messing with my head," Joanne laughed. She gently kissed her boyfriend and stared out onto the water.

"Are you planning on seeing any of the lofters tonight?" David asked.

Joanne laughed. "Lofters" had been the word David chose to call Joanne's old friends.

"I wasn't planning on it. I might go see Tom, because he actually still respects me somewhat. Maureen is not on speaking terms with me, which takes the chance of seeing Mimi out of the picture. Roger never really was the warmest kind and seeing Mark is too awkward."

David nodded and pointed in the foggy distance at the Statue of Liberty. His dark colored skin glistened in the sunlight that was peeking out through the clouds. His brown eyes glistened as he smiled at Joanne. His hair fell in his face slightly, given him the appearance of a young child.

David is so cute. Why can't I just be happy here? I just keep wondering what would happen if I go back to the loft and confront Maureen. Maybe she will take me back and I can forget about David. David is so cute though. Around him, I feel like his sister though. I hate this stupid holiday.